Hiya!

Hiya! :) Just wanted to share this week's Get Sketchy card! :)  The base paper is from Crate Paper (Restoration). The white cardstock was misted (no surprise, huh?) and the edges inked! Paper doiley. The cute penguins are from Some Odd Girl...coloured them with Copics and added googly eyes! :)

P/s: Don't forget to enter my little giveaway and play with my guest Smita's ribbon challenge! :)

Vainpot...and a little giveaway!

I love heels. They make feel sexy and feminine. I have no qualms about towering over people. *LOL*  These are my latest pair...love the little stud action they have going at the edges. :) But what is the price of vanity? Pain of course...:(  These shoes look as good on me as they hurt my feet. I wore these shoes just once and the lesson learnt? Save it for days I drive or for sit-down dinners! Any other vainpots like me? ;)

I did a lot of fussy cutting on this layout, mounting some of the elements on foam dots for some extra dimension. The fun part was adding all the cutesy stuff from the various Gauche Alchemy Mixed Media Color Kits!

_________________________________________________________________________

So I have been going on and on about how great the Gauche Alchemy Mixed Media Color Kits are right? How would you like to try them out for yourself? 

I would love to give ONE lucky person TWO color kits of their choice!:)

So...leave a COMMENT in this post telling me how vain you are...and which two mixed media color kits you want to win.  I'll pick a winner next Friday! :)

A little bundle of joy

Meet this little bundle of joy, my friend Carrie's boy Lucius. Oh, isn't he adorable? :)

Base paper is from Webster's Pages. I inked the edges with distress inks and spritzed a little mist (orange & green). The photo mat and tag were also misted and inked. Scraps from My Little Shoebox (sheep) and American Crafts (butterfly). Googly eyes. Paper doiley. Then I went crazy with rub-ons (KaiserCraft) and stickers (SRM stickers, Jenni Bowlin, 7 Gypsies), just building on the patterns already on the base paper. Check out the balloon brads I added...and the cute monkey! :) 

Inspired by the sketch at Get Picky and The Studio Challenges.

Who loves treats?

Who loves treats??? Me me me! :) I decorated the cover of a food container for my Halloween treats. Noticed that I didn't include a picture of the container standing upright with all the yummy treats? No prizes for guessing why! :)

Patterned papers are from Graphic 45 (Alice in Wonderland). Felt. Brads.Stickles. Googly eyes. All embellishments are from Gauche Alchemy's Mixed Media Color Kits.

P/s: I hope you find time to play along with my guest Smita's ribbon challenge! :)

Just a breath of fresh air

Sometimes we need a break from routine...my littlest nephew J is just that breath of fresh air. Nephew #3 is just soooo different from the other two. I love my nephews to death but this one, really tugs at my 

my heart. :) He's so acutely aware of his surroundings that it's hard to believe he's all of 18 months. Just on Saturday, he came to sit on my lap, took my hand and put his tiny hand on mine, then looked up at me and smiled...awww....:)

Just a quick layout I whipped out using mists, a paper doiley and embellishments from the Gauche Alchemy Mixed Media Color Kits. Inspired by the sketch from Creative Scrappers.

__________________________________________________

A big thank you to all of you who played along with my guest Sherryann's handmade flowers challenge! :)  Without further ado, the winner (who was randomly selected) is...

#4 Shraddha! 

Congratulations! You win the famed wrinkle ribbon from Sherryann! :)

Life as we know it...

Hi there friends! :) Life as we know it... sometimes presents interesting challenges and pleasant surprises! :) Piqued your curiosity huh? [dramatic music plays in the background!]  All will be revealed in layouts to come. ...:)

Just wanted to share this layout I did (yes, my big brother again!) using the sketch from Sketchy Thursdays. I had a little fun creating messy pleats with ribbon (as inspired by Moxie Fab World and my guest Smita's ribbon challenge) and buttons. Some misting on the photo mats. Patterned paper is from American Crafts. Chipboard is from Heidi Swapp (just added Stickles). White pen.

P/s: I'll be SLOW in returning blog visits because I'm having intermittent router issues and living precariously on my broadband dongle and smartphone.

Lighten up!

Oh yes! Lighten up....it's the weekend...let's party! :)

This is my card for this week's Get Sketchy! :) Paper doiley, felt, pom pom trim, glittered alphas, stickles (on the lantern) and white pen. 

And how about a little flashback (aka Amy Tsuruta's Flashback Friday 4.0 )? Circa December 2009?



My first X'mas card! :)

Spooky October

Hi there! Are you having a Spooky October? I love all the Halloween-inspired creativity out there even though technically, I don't really celebrate Halloween...except for the "eating the treats" part...*LOL* Are you sending me treats??? ;)

This is the art journal page that I created for Some Odd Girl's latest colour challenge...which kind of screams Halloween...orange, green and purple! Layers and layers of paint and gesso on the background...the webs were created from Tim Holtz masks...coloured in with a black Sharpie! :) The Some Odd Girl digis were coloured with Copics. All the cute embellishments are from Gauche Alchemy's Mixed Media Color Kits!

Oh smile birthday boy!

This week's song at Scrapping The Music is the song Bubbly by Colbie Cailliat. A happy happy song! My layout features my nephew, O, who recently celebrated his 4th birthday! :) The birthday boy gave me some pretty sweet smiles! :)

Just a little fun with some Sassafras scraps and crepe paper. Brads. Button. Some handstitching and loads of stickers! :) I used a Pencil Lines sketch. :)

Are you a green crafter?

I make a conscious effort to be "green" especially when it comes to crafting....stretching the use of supplies and using "found" objects on my projects. While I love the effect of luscious layers on my layouts, I try to create depth through inking and mixing different textures instead of adding layers of paper on top of each other. Not only do I do my part for the environment, my scrapbooks are lighter and a lot less bulky! :)

What about you? Are you a green crafter?

I love this Pink Paislee paper (base). It has some resist design on it so all I had to do was ink and mist a little. The burlap fabric is from the Gauche Alchemy BabyKiddoCutie Papercraft kit. I also used Ouchless cardboard to add a little dimension to my layout! And those pull-off tabs tell you how many drinks I've had! ;) Alphas are from American Crafts.

This layout was inspired by the challenge over at Better Living Through Scrapbooking. Gauche Alchemy's a sponsor this month so do play along for your chance to win some goodies! :)

P/s: The voting for the Monkee contest has started over at Some Odd Girl! Hop over there to vote because for every 20 comments received, 1 set of Monkees will be given away! :) 

Ribbon fun with Smita Lakhotia!

My guest today is the lovely Smita Lakhotia of Kreativity and Me. Smita makes really wonderful creations with loads of texture and yummy details. And she doesn't shy away from bright colours! :) She has an awesome challenge for us and a RAK for a random participant. :)

Let's have a look at her gallery, shall we?

______________________________________________________________________________

I woke up on  a Monday morning to see Yvonne’s mail in my Inbox giving me the chance to guest blog here… I literally rubbed my eyes a few times to make sure it wasn’t a dream J. It truly is an honor.

I am Smita, a SAHM to a 3+ years old boy and as I always say, he is my inspiration. I started active crafting after Aaryan’s birth in 2007 and to date, he is the one who loves my work the most. My blog is mostly full of cards though I occasionally dabble in 3D objects too.

I live in India, and international crafting supplies are almost non-existent here. We have a growing community of card makers and scrapbookers here in India, and we are slowly witnessing a change in the crafting scene here. Though I have ordered quite a few tools online from the US, I still tend to use quite a lot of local supplies. I search the local markets thoroughly and buy whatever I think I like (not really bothering about what is in vogue with card makers everywhere). In fact, I love my local buys most of the time and would encourage everyone to look around and see what catches their eyes.

I don’t follow any particular style and am usually somewhere in between styles. I love using ribbons, laces and flowers on my cards. And that is exactly what I am going to challenge you to do – use a new ribbon and/or lace technique (something you have wanted to but not tried before) in your creation. And here’s a twist- no stamping! I know most of you swear by stamping (I don’t… lol), but try a project without it.

I have used a couple of simple techniques in my card. The ribbon ruffles are stapled with colored staples (I started using them because the double sided tape available here would just not hold the ribbon! {wink}). I have also made a scallop border with a regular ric rac lace around the square panel. See, easy techniques, but they add interest to the card J.

I’ll send across some local ribbon, lace and flowers to the winner. 

_______________________________________________________________________________

A really fun challenge, right?  Please link up your creations using InLinkz (located at the end of this post) by Friday 5th November.

Please leave a little love for my guest Smita! :)

Crawl

Did you crawl a lot when you were a baby? My older brother did. Apparently, he couldn't pass up on any stairs...*LOL*. Yes, I'm still scrapping his baby photos...he has a LOT of them. In all fairness, he was cute as a baby...Now...not so much...[insert evil laughter].

I had fun with this layout! :) Patterned papers are from Sassafras. Mist splatters. Buttons. Stickers. A little handstiching. A little bling. I was inspired by Sketchy Thursdays and Mission to Create.

P/s: Don't forget to submit your creations featuring handmade flowers for my guest Sherryann's challenge! It ends this Friday! :)

*Edited* This was a Sketchy Thursdays Fave! :)

Escapade

Escapade: a usually adventurous action that runs counter to approved or conventional conduct.

Today, October 15, is Blog Action Day. An annual event that unites the world's bloggers in posting about the same issue on the same day with the aim of sparking a global discussion and driving collective action. This year's topic is water.

About 70% of the earth's surface is covered with water and most of it is the ocean. Like many of you, I am fortunate to have access to clean water. I showered this morning with clean running water. I filled my bottle today with clean water from the tap. For that, I am grateful. 

But for almost a billion people in poor developing countries, safe drinking water remains elusive. That means that 1 in 8 of us are being subject to preventable disease and death for something that most of us take for granted.

Let us take pause today to appreciate water by using it sparingly and thoughtfully..:)

I wish you a fabulous weekend and leave you with my card for Get Sketchy.... Patterned paper is from Prima. Alphas are from American Crafts. And a little flashback circa April 2009 (aka Amy Tsuruta's Flashback 3.0)...

This was my first challenge card that made Top 5 at Card Patterns.

P/s: Thank you so much for your comments on my last post Today is a gift. I'm truly humbled by your kind words. :)

Today is a gift

Sometimes it's hard to wake up in the morning and tell yourself..."Today is a gift" especially when you've spent the night counting billions of sheep (including the ones on my jammies). But I try every single day. *High fives all around*

Not to look for that one spectacular thing that would make me deliriously happy but to appreciate the little moments of sweetness in life. You know, when a stranger holds the door open for you, when someone sends you a 'Just because' card, when your bloggy pal leaves you the sweetest comment or when someone's face just lights up when you enter the room (okay it could totally be my neon outfit blinding said person but I choose to think it's due to my awesomeness!) *LOL*

Well, thank you for reading thus far.:) I want to share this layout that I did. Some misting on the background. And lots of different handmade flowers for my guest blogger Sherryann Eckblad's handmade flowers challenge. Echo Park Papers. 


Have the most awesome Thursday! :)

Bubbly

My littlest nephew J, on his good days (see Dark side), has such bubbly charm. For some strange reason, he's always really happy when he's in my room [Could be because I have a basket full of toys next to my bed.]...the first thing he points to is my chandelier and then he starts giggling...:)

A really simple layout. I used the sketch from Creative Scrappers. A little misting. And bits from Basic Grey, Cosmo Cricket, Sassafras, 7 Gypsies and Fancy Pants. Title work was done with American Crafts stickers and doodling with a white pen. 

_______________________________________________________________________

This morning, I got an email from Julie Elak, my guest blogger who hosted the 3D creation challenge. She was very impressed with the quality of the entries that she has decided to pick a runner-up for the challenge! How sweet right? I have THE nicest bloggy pals! :)

So, here's the runner-up (randomly selected)...

#2 Amy Tsuruta! 

Congratulations! You've won a template from Perfect Presentation!:)

P/s: I would love for you to play with the current handmade flowers challenge by guest blogger Sherryann Eckblad! :)

Let it snow cupcakes

Hi there! I have no idea why the sentiment on this card is "Let it snow cupcakes"! *LOL* This is when you try to craft in the wee hours of the morning and have a serious craving for cupcakes. :) But SERIOUSLY, wouldn't it be cool if it actually snowed cupcakes?

Some misting on the background. Digital image is from Some Odd Girl. Coloured with Copics. Notepaper is from Teresa Collins. Fimo clay cupcakes (courtesy of Mirjam). Inspired by Sasya's Sketches.

_______________________________________________________________________

A very big "thank you" to all those who played along with my guest Julie Elak's 3D creation challenge! It was great to see all the wonderful creations...:) The winner (who was randomly selected) is...

#7 Jen P 

Congratulations! You've won 3 templates from Perfect Presentation.

Once upon a time

Once upon a time, not so long ago, I was one of those frustrated Nokia phone users who had to constantly send my phone in for servicing. The Nokia service centre was located in a building that was home to a scrapbooking store. Yes. My foray into the crafting world has to be credited to the Finnish company that used to sell toilet paper. *LOL* 

How did you get into crafting?

Just a simple layout featuring my older brother when he was 11 months old. I used the sketch from Sketchy Thursdays and the BabyKiddoCutie Paper Craft Kit from Gauche Alchemy. Mist splatters and some handstitching on one edge. MS punch and brads. Buttons and sequins

Trick or treat

Happy Friday! :) Here's my trick or treat card for Get Sketchy. This week, the design team got to play with some fun digi images from Tiffany Doodles! Check out my glittered birdie on a broomstick! :) My nephew took one look at the bird and broom and asked if the bird was going to clean the house!!! *LOL*

Some misting on the cardstock. Patterned paper is from My Mind's Eye. Stickles. Trim.
This card was featured on the Create blog: Halloween cards.

P/s: There's a new challenge up on the Some Odd Girl Challenge Blog! 

Go back

This week's challenge at Scrapping The Music is the song This is Home by Switchfoot. My layout features my older brother when he was about a year old. Love his baby photos...all in black and white...with him all by himself unlike my baby photos which has him ruining all my shots by being in those frames! Wish I could go back in time to push him away! *LOL* (I know, I should just crop him out but I scrap original photos! I scan them for a digital copy and then I scrap the original photos.)

Just some Sassafras scraps, white paint and some Gauche Alchemy goodness! :) I used the sketch from Creative Scrappers.

I'm officially out of titles for my layouts.

Yes. I'm officially out of titles for my layouts. Seriously. Did I not come up with witty one-liners/captions before today? *LOL*

Photo features my older brother when he was a baby...being fed noodles (mian) by my grandmother.

Patterned paper is from American Crafts....I got tired of cutting them out (can you tell?)...hmmm... the green cardstock does add some visual interest to the piece right? (I'm sticking to my story!!!) And yes, that's some crazy handstitching...I find it therapeutic to poke holes in paper! *LOL*

P/s: My guest blogger Julie Elak's 3D creation challenge ends this Friday! And there's also a new challenge by  my guest blogger Sherryann...card/layout featuring handmade flowers.

Sweet and simple with Sherryann Eckblad

My guest today is Sherryann Eckblad of Button Junkie.  Sherry has a really sweet and simple cardmaking style that truly has timeless appeal. Her trademark? Those beautiful handmade flowers on her creations! :) She has a really simple challenge for us and a lovely RAK for one random participant. You have to read on to find out more! :)

Let's admire her gallery first, shall we?

__________________________________________________

I am so honored to be chosen to be Yvonne's Guest Blogger and when she first asked me I was not sure I should do it. After some consideration I thought what the HECK just do it.

My name is Sherry but here in blogland I go by sherryann which is what my family calls me. I live in Minnesota with my husband Joe, son Justin and a green cheeked conure parrot named Birdie. I have been making cards and scrapbooking off and on for about 10 years and only in the last year have I got into blogging and posting my creations.

If someone were to ask me my favorite style I would say it is Clean and Simple and sometimes a little vintage. I love making flowers and you will find them on a lot of my cards and layouts. I was asked to think of a challenge so I am going to challenge all of you to create a card or layout using handmade flowers. Here is a simple tutorial that I found on the internet for making the spiral roses.

Please stop by my blog (www.buttonjunkie.blogspot.com) and say hello and leave me a link to your creation as I would love to see it. I will offer the winner of this challenge some of my handmade wrinkle ribbon.

_________________________________________________________

Are you ready to play along with Sherryann's handmade flowers challenge? Please link up your creations using InLinkz (located at the end of this post) by Friday 22nd October.

As always, please leave a little love for my guest Sherry. :)