Fancy Friday Blog Hop Challenge

Today I found a really fun challenge on Connie Collin's Constantly Stamping blog.  It's called the Fancy Friday blog hop. 

This challenge, presented by the Fancy Friday Blog Hop is to create a project using the beautiful color palette found on this chair from faceliftfurniture.com.  

The way this challenge works is really simple, you just have to use any or all of the colors in this palette plus neutrals to create a stamped project and post a comment on any of the Fancy Friday blog hop blogs, with a link to the project.  Now that is pretty simple.  Oh and did I mention that by playing along I'll be entered for a chance to win the Seasonally Scattered stamp set?   

Here's My Project:

 

The colours in the chair palette simply screamed "Fall" and "Thanks Giving" to me, so I knew I wanted to make a card with that kind of theme. As yet, I don't have any of the new fall stamps so I decided to dust off my Wonderfall* stamp set and coordinating  Autumn Accents Bigz Die Cuts .   I was stuck for a sentiment stamp until my friend Sheri loaned me her "Let Your Hair Down" hostess stamp set and once I saw it, I knew what I was going to do. 

The Autumn Accents Bigz Die contains 4 leaf images.  Although the Wonderfall stamp set is retired, you can still purchase the MDS Digital "Wonderfall" package for only $8.85.  Click here to see the Wonderfall Album on My Digital Studio.

The Let Your Hair Down hostess stamp set is available for free if you place an on-line order in my store for $200+ or hold a workshop in your home or mine with sales over $200.  Check out my event calendar for the month of September there are lots of opportunities for workshop nights.

I used all the colours in the colour palette plus Whisper White card stock for my neutral colour.  When you're making a card like this the "stamp-a-ma-jig" is your best friend in your stamping tool box, as it helps to keep your stamped sentiment perfectly spaced and aligned.  

Remember to clean your stamps before changing the colour for each stamped line.  TIP:  Since this is such an easy card to make I would suggest you stamp off several of the sentiment layers, a line at a time, and set them aside for other cards. I'd do the same with the leaves and stamp several of the images in various colours and then set them aside.  That way you are not having to clean and wipe off your stamps as much.

I simply love this bouquet of leaves tied up with some linen thread.  All of the layers are adhered together with glue dots, except for the acorn which was mounted with dimensionals. 

This is a view of the inside of the card.  The sentiment from the retired Friend to Friend stamp set is stamped in Blackberry Bliss ink.  The large leaf in Island Indigo was stamped directly to the card liner but the two acorns
were stamped separately and then adhered with dimensionals.  
 
Supplies:
Stamp Sets:  Wonderfall (R), Friend to Friend (R)
Ink:  Island Indigo, Tangelo Twist, Blackberry Bliss, Real Red, Early Espresso 
Card Stock and Measurements: 

• Card front measuring 4 1/4" x 11 was cut from Early Espresso and then embossed with the Hounds tooth Embossing Folder (R).  
• The next layer on the card front is a piece of Real Red measuring 4" x 4 3/4"
• The final layer of Whisper White measures 3 3/4" x 4 1/2"  
• The inside layer of Whisper White measures 5 x 3 3/4" 

Scraps of Whisper White were used for the leaf images.

Accessories:  Stampa-ma-jig, Autumn Accents Bigz  Die, Big Shot Machine, Hounds tooth Embossing Folder, Linen Thread, dimensionals, glue dots. 

Okay folks that's it for today's stamping!  Glad you dropped by for a visit, and I hope you liked this card and will follow the links in the blog hop.

Happy Stampin'
Penny Tokens 

Tea Party Friendship Card

 I'm starting off September with a sketch challenge by the Paper Craft Crew PCCCS107 and a Colour Challenge by Create with Connie and Mary CCMC318.

Here's The Sketch:

 Here's the Colour Challenge:

Here's My Card:

Supplies:
Stamp Set: Tea Party, Friend To Friend (R)
Ink and Markers:  Basic Gray, Pool Party, Hello Honey
Card Stock:  Basic Gray, Pool Party, Hello Honey
DSP:  All Abloom
Accessories:  Oval Collection Framelit Dies, Big Shot, Perfect Polka Dots and Delicate Designs Embossing Folders, Basic Rhinestones, 3/8" Basic Gray Taffeta Ribbon (R), Trimmer 

I have to apologize for this fuzzy picture of the inside of the card.   I'm embarrassed that it's not in focus, however I think you can tell enough through the blurriness that I coloured the flower vase with markers.  The sentiment is from a retired stamp set called Friend to Friend. 

I love using the Tea Party Stamp set and trying different colour combinations with the main image.  For this one I stamped the image twice - once in basic gray, and a second time in Hello Honey ink.  I then fussy cut around the central part of the image and glued it to the basic gray one.  I used Tom Bow glue so I had a little bit of lee way in making sure that the Hello Honey image centered perfectly.  

This versatile collection of five stamps comes in Wood or Clear Mount, and coordinates with the Oval Framelits, Large Oval Punch, Large Tag Punch.  Great value for the money!

Because the Oval Collection Framelits are not true nestabilities with a 1/4" or less between ovals, I wound up fussy cutting around both the stamped images.  This enabled me to layer them onto the Hello Honey oval.
 
I added three rhinestones in various sizes from medium to large in the left hand corner of the image to comply with the sketch.  There are also a couple of other rhinestones on the circular designs in each of the corners.........just can't get enough bling!  

Well that's it for today folks.  I hope you enjoyed this card and will stop at the challenge sites to check out all the great cards that've been posted.  I'm leaving you with one last look at my card.

HAPPY STAMPING!
PENNY TOKENS  
03/09/14  Post Script: I just found out that I was one of the Top Three Picks for this card on Connie and Mary's Sketch Challenge CCMC318.  I hope you'll check out the fabulous cards made by the other two picks Julie and Laurie. 

This card also got me on the Artisan's Picks for the Paper Craft Crew challenge, which is awesome. I was honoured to be chosen along with Heidi Weaver and  Cynthia Richards who made awesome Halloween theme cards. Make sure you go and check out both sites.
 

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #151

It's Labour Day weekend and, as usually happens on a long weekend, we've had a mixed bag of weather, with cooling temperatures and some rain.  I feel sad that the beautiful warm weather we'd been having didn't hold for all those families trying to get in one last camping trip or day at the beach before the bustle of September and back to school starts. Oh well, it's the prelude to fall. 

Today I've made a Sympathy card based on a sketch from Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #151.  I liked the simplicity of this sketch designed by Kim Singdalsen the Freshly Made Sketches August Guest Designer.  It was her first ever sketch, and she's done an awesome job!  Check out all Kim's other great cards on her blog Joyful Creations With Kim.  

Here's Kim's Sketch:

Here's My Card:

Supplies:
Stamp Sets: 

• Four Frames
• Teeny Tiny Wishes 
• Friend to Friend (R)
• Gorgeous Grunge
• Papillion Potpourri
• Stippled Blossoms

Card stock:  

• Crumb cake for the 8 1/2 x 5 1/2" base, the 3 1/4" x 3 1/4" layer and the 1/2" x 3 1/8" banner.
• Soft Sky for 3 x 3" layer and scrap for the Decorative Label layers
• Very Vanilla 5 x 3 3/4" for first layer, 2 7/8" x 2 7/8" for stamped layer and a scrap for the Decorative layer and butterfly.

Ink:  Crumb Cake, Early Espresso and Soft Sky

Accessories:   

• Decorative Label Punch
• Bitty Butterfly Punch
• Square Lattice Embossing Folder (R)
• Honeycomb Embossing Folder 
• Aqua Painter
• Basic Pearls
• Dimensionals, Glue Dots, Adhesive Strips

 

The Very Vanilla layer measuring 5" x 3 3/4" was embossed with the Honeycomb Embossing Folder and then randomly and lightly stamped with the speckled stamp from the Gorgeous Grunge set and Soft Sky Ink.

The banner strip was cut from Crumb Cake card stock and embossed with the now retired Square Lattice Embossing Folder.  Three medium sized basic pearls were added for some interest.

For the 3rd layer on the card I stamped the floral image from the Four Frames stamp set in Crumb Cake on a piece of Very Vanilla card stock.  Details on the flowers were touched up with Soft Sky ink and an Aqua Painter.  One small basic pearl was added to the top flower to tie it in with the flowers on the 2nd layer.  This piece was punched out with the Decorative Label punch and a border was added in Soft Sky card stock.  Some small sprinkles were added in Soft Sky with the Gorgeous Grunge stamp.
 

Decorative Label Punch coordinates with the Four Frames Stamp Set.

Four Frames Stamp set - a very stylish stamp set.

I started the design on the 2nd layer of Very Vanilla card stock by randomly stamping the sprinkle image from Gorgeous Grunge in Crumb Cake ink.  The large rose and smaller detailed petal roses from the Stippled Blossoms stamp set, were then stamped randomly in Crumb Cake  ink. I used an Aqua painter and Soft Sky ink to add shadows and hints of colour to the roses and then finished off this layer with a smattering of tiny basic pearls in the flower centers. 

I

 I wanted to keep the inside of the card simple with lots of "white space".  A 5 x 3 3/4" piece of Soft Sky was added to the inside of the card and topped with a piece of Very Vanilla cardstock measuring 3 1/2" x 4 3/4".  The sentiment "Thinking of You" from the retired Friend to Friend set was stamped in Early Espresso and the large flower image from Stippled Blossoms was stamped in the bottom corner in Soft Sky.

The beautiful little butterfly was stamped twice in Soft Sky ink on Very Vanilla cardstock and then punched out with the Bitty Butterfly punch.  The edges of the butterfly were sponged with Soft Sky and Crumb Cake inks.  The butterflies were nested with a Glue Dot and then added to the card with a dimensional.  The wings were fluffed up with the bone folder to give an appearance of flight and finally a small band of pearls was added for the body. 

Here's the finished card.  I'm pleased with how it turned out. 

Well that's it for today folks.  I hope you'll take the time to go and check out all the other entries and guest designer cards for this sketch on the Freshly Made Sketches blog site.  There is so much creativeness and awesome ideas there. 

Happy Stamping!
Penny Tokens

Host a Party and get "Good Greetings

Now's your chance to get the "Good Greetings" stamp set for FREE along with all the other freebies you'll earn when you host a home party with $325 in sales before S&H and tax. 

This special offer is only available between now and October 31st, 2014. So don't delay.  I've marked some dates that are now available on my event calendar, so call me now to choose one. 

The Good Greeting's Stamp Set comes with 19 clear or wood mount stamps and is perfect for all occasions.  

Did you know that Stampin' Up! Party's and workshops come in all different shapes and sizes? It doesn't matter how you get together with your friends and family to share your love of stamping, they're all fun, so pick one that works for you and your friends.  Here are some fun ideas to get you started:

*Host a party in your home with friends and family
*Host a fundraiser
*Host a Stamp Night in your home with friends and family
*Host a workshop or class in my home and bring your friends and family
*Hold a catalogue party- virtual or over a cup of coffee
*Host a  "Coffee and Chocolate" stamping party in your favourite bistro

Call me for more information on hosting a party and all the hostess benefits.  

Happy Stamping!
Penny Tokens

New Holiday Catalogue Goes Live Today!!!

August 28th is finally here, and it marks the official start of the new "Make It Fun, Make it Together" Holiday Catalogue.

I've just added the PDF version of this catalogue to my right side-bar under Current Catalogues, so you'll have easy access to it when you visit my blog.

I can't wait for you to view this Holiday Catalogue, there are so many exciting new features like - fun kits, framelits and coordinating stamps, ribbons and seasonal designer papers.  So whether your thing is Fall, Halloween, Christmas, you'll find it all here in this one catalogue.  This catalogue is available until January 5, 2014.

Happy Stamping!
Penny Tokens

Paper Craft Crew Sketch Challenge #106

Today was my Stampin' on Tuesday fun day and I was joined by my two stampin' buddies, Sheri and Debby. 

Sheri and I started the morning with a 2 mile walk.  We're trying to combine some exercise with our weekly stamping routine.  Debby joined us for salad and chicken quesadillas and then we did some stamping.  Such a great day when you can share it with your friends!

My project for today is a sketch by the Paper Craft Card Crew Sketch #106 PCCCS06.   Here is the sketch outline:

 

Isn't this a great sketch.  There's a lot going on  with all the different elements so I really had to put my thinking cap on.  Make sure you check out all the great entries from the Paper Craft Crew Design Team and from the participants.  You can vote for your favourites later tonight and voting is open until September 2nd.  You can also check out PCCC on Facebook or on Pinterest.

Here's My Card:

I took my colour inspiration from the beautiful All Abloom Designer Series Paper pack.  I chose a design with flowers in soft sherbet colours that reminded me of chenille housecoats and soft slippers.  A real throwback in colour, and I think that's what's so great about these little designer paper packs.  

The All Abloom stack is like going back in time, mostly old fashioned prints and designs and soft colours - Blushing Bride, Daffodil Delight, Island Indigo, Lost Lagoon, Mossy Meadow, Pistachio Pudding, Strawberry Slush, Whisper White.  With each paper pack you get 48 sheets of 4 12 x 6 1/2" designer paper, including 4 each of 12 double sided designs.  The colours and the patterns all mix and match.  Who can go wrong!

The card base is an 8 1/2 x 5 1/2" piece of Strawberry Slush In Colour cardstock scored at 4 1/2".  I've added a layer of Pistachio Pudding measuring 5 1/4" x 4" followed by a Whisper White layer measuring 5 x 3 3/4".  Unfortunately you can just barely see the spots on the Whisper White layer but they were made with Daffodil Delight and Pistachio Pudding Ink and the spotted image from Gorgeous Grunge, a retired stamp set.

I kept the inside of the card plain and simple just adding some small punched flowers and a sentiment from the Chalk Talk stamp set. 

Supplies:

Stamp Set:  Chalk Talk, Gorgeous Grunge

Card Stock:  Strawberry Slush, Pistachio Pudding, Whisper White and Daffodil Delight and All Abloom Designer Series Paper Pack

Ink:  Pistachio Pudding, Strawberry Slush, Daffodil Delight

Accessories:  Chalk Talk Framelits, Basic Rhinestones, Delightful Designs Embossing Folder, 1/4", 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches, Itty Bitty Punch Pack flower punch, dimensionals, trimmer, big shot machine.

Happy Stampin'!

Penny Tokens

September 3, 2014 Post Script:  Just a note to let you know this card was one of the Featured Artisans for the Paper Craft Crew Challenges today.  What an honour.  Thanks so much Paper Craft Crew. http://www.papercraftcrew.com/pcccs-106-featured-artisans/

You Make Me Happy - PPA216

What a beautiful summer we've been so fortunate to have!  Our weather's held for the past few weeks in the mid-20's giving us just the perfect summer.  

Today I'm starting off the week with a bit of a twist.  I created a card using the Paper Pals Art CAS sketch designed by Margaret Moody.  

While choosing my card stock and designer series paper, I decided to go with a Mossey Meadow print from the paper stack and use the paper colour for a monochromatic scheme.  

I made my card and I really liked it but then, and here's the twist, I decided to remake the card using the colour challenge from Just Add Ink, and I did it not once, but twice!  

Here's the Sketch and Colour Challenge:

Here Are My Cards:

For my Monochromatic card, I used a Whisper White card base with a layer of Mossey Meadow and then a second layer of Whisper White card stock.  I used 31/2" tags made with the Scallop Tag Topper Punch instead of panels for my card.  

I also used the Scalloped Tag Topper punch to create a panel measuring 4 1/2" x 1 3/4".  I stamped this with leaves from the the Blooming with Hope stamp set, before adding the "You Make Me Happy" tag from the Perfect Pennants stamp set.  This was cut out with the Banner's Framelits. 

I stamped  9 floral images from the Petite Petals stamp set and cut them out with the co-ordinating Petals punch and adhered them to the front and inside of the card.  Some basic rhinestones finished off the card. 

My monochromatic card for the Paper Pals Challenge/218.

Here is my card for the Just Add Ink colour challenge.  It features Blackberry Bliss, Calypso Coral and Mossey Meadow.

This is the third card I made, also using the Just Add Ink colour combo challenge.   I switched out the banner and the flower colours and flipped the two tags to change this card up a bit.  Also did the inside panel a bit different. 

Each of the cards has a slightly different set up for the panel in terms of the positioning of the border stamps and the flowers.  

Inside the Blackberry Bliss card

Inside the Monochromatic card. 

Here are the three cards together. 

Hope you enjoyed this challenge and will visit both Paper Pals and Just Add Ink to see all the other great cards by the designers and participants.

Before I go just a reminder don't forget about the Short and Sweet Starter Kit promotions! Only four more days until this great promo ends on August 28th.  As a new demonstrator you'll receive $190 worth of products in your Starter Kit for just $125! Click Here for details!

Happy Stamping!
Penny Tokens