Cardmaking and Scrapbooking with Jean Manis
The sketch at Retrosketches this week presented a terrific design challenge of balancing pattern and color.
The ever-so-slightly longer days here in the Pacific Northwest have me thinking about spring and led to my choice of bright-colored cardstock and a floral motif for my card.
Supplies: Stampin’ Up cardstock (yellow); Colorbox white pigment ink; May Arts twine; My Mind’s Eye button
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This week’s Retrosketches sketch is fantastic, and I couldn’t wait to play along!
I combined a monkey and banana from a Hero Arts digital set with some of the newly-released Hero Arts stamps. The tweed background stamp is one I will be reaching for all year!
I’m also linking this card up with the CAS-ual Fridays challenge focused on “Thanks.”
Supplies: October Afternoon Midway Collection (orange-striped paper); Hero Arts Monkeying Around digital stamp set
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I just can’t get enough of the Paper Smooches “Autumn Groves” set and decided to use it for this week’s fabulous Retro Sketches challenge. I can see myself using this sketch over and over.
I began by choosing the patterned paper strips using papers from Simple Stories and My Mind’s Eye. The MME paper is some I’ve had for awhile from a collection that I really like. I’ll be sad when it gets all used up! I colored my scarecrow and pumpkin based on the colors in the papers with Copic markers. The sentiment, crow, and fence are stamped onto the background. Lining that crow up, and knowing I had just one “take” was no small feat (read previous post on battling perfectionism!). Although the sketch calls for a square card, once I’d built my scene, a rectangular format made more sense. I kept the background quiet with a neutral cardstock.
Supplies: Stampin’ Up cardstock; Simple Stories and My Mind’s Eye patterned papers; May Arts twine
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With early fall in the air (and a few fallen leaves already on the ground), I was in the mood to play with the Neat & Tangled Halloween Scene stamp set for this week’s Retrosketches challenge.
I’ve had the My Mind’s Eye Halloween paper for at least a year, and I believe it was actually introduced two years ago. I like the neighborhood depicted with the costumed trick-or-treaters. I paired the paper with a stamped haunted house onto which I paper-pieced a door and windows. I also curved my sentiment, which I’ve never done before. It was much easier to do than I ever imagined!
Supplies: Neat & Tangled Halloween Scene stamp set; My Mind’s Eye & Echo Park patterned papers; Basic Grey button; May Arts twine; Hero Arts dye ink; Bo Bunny ribbon; Avery Elle kraft & off-white cardstock; Spellbinders circle die
Our youngest son left to go back to college at the beginning of this week. Our oldest leaves in September (his school is on the quarter system, so they start later and get out later than schools on the semester system) – we’re not in full “empty nest” mode yet.
I had my youngest son in mind when I created a card for the Retrosketches #24 sketch challenge.
I set out to create a masculine-looking card in fall colors. I paired camping-themed papers from American Crafts with dry-embossed brown cardstock. It was my first time using the A Muse Studio impression plate. In fact, it was the first time I’ve ever used an impression plate. (I have several embossing folders that I use on a regular basis). I tried several Big Shot sandwich formulas before finding one that worked. I sanded the paper after embossing it to bring out the woodgrain.
Supplies: Paper Smooches Happy Camper stamp set; A Muse Studio impression plate; Papers: Echo Park; Stampin’ Up; Neenah; American Crafts; Fiskars punch; Spellbinders circle dies; Versamark ink; Stampin Up’ embossing powder