Best New Thoughts — FMS190

Posted on June 10, 2015 by amyoneillblog

Another Wednesday has arrived, and that means it’s time for a new challenge over at Freshly Made Sketches. And this week, I have the pleasure of being the hostess. I can’t wait to see what y’all do with the sketch!

I put an oval in the sketch, but feel free to use any shape you like. The design team used all sorts of different things — love their creativity! I had intended to use an oval on my card, but you know how sometimes one thing leads to another, and before you know it, you’ve ended up with something totally different than what you had originally planned.

I just got my box of new catalog goodies, so I was dying to try some out. I started with a strip of dsp from Everyday Chic, which has lots of fun black and white patterns. I then stamped the gorgeous flower from the hostess set, Best Thoughts, and colored it with an aquapainter using Watermelon Wonder (I can’t stop using this color!) and Cucumber Crush.

The sentiment is a die from the new Thinlets set called Greetings. I love these dies!

I added a peek of Watermelon Wonder Dotted Lace Trim and some baker’s twine. And I ended up with a pretty simple card.

We hope you’ll play along and make your own card using the sketch. You can jump on over to the Freshly Made Sketches site to see what the design team made for some inspiration. They rocked this sketch!

Enjoy your Wednesday! Thanks for stopping by!

Eclectic In-Colors — FMS189

Posted on June 3, 2015 by amyoneillblog

It’s another Wednesday, and that means it’s time for another sketch over at the Freshly Made Sketches site. This week, our good friend from down under is our hostess, and she has a great sketch for us. Narelle is so talented at making multi-layered cards look clean and easy, so it’s no surprise that her sketch has some fun layers.

I pulled out a beloved stamp set that has gotten a little dusty on my shelf, Kinda Eclectic. I used some of the new In-Colors with it — Watermelon Wonder, Cucumber Crush, and Tip Top Taupe.

I started by embossing the sunburst image with some Crushed Curry embossing powder (retired now). The sentiment is from the Another Thank You photopolymer set.

We hope you’ll join us and play along with this challenge. It’s always fun for us to see what’s in the gallery each week. Meanwhile, you can hop on over to the Freshly Made Sketches site to see what the design team made for some inspiration. You’ll see lots of beautifully creative and very different interpretations for this sketch.

Enjoy your Wednesday! Thanks for stopping by!

HB 2 a Teen Boy — FMS188

Posted on May 27, 2015 by amyoneillblog

It’s time for another new challenge at Freshly Made Sketches. And this week, our favorite paper crafter from New Zealand, Karren Johnson, is our hostess. She has a fun one for us:

I needed a birthday card for a teenage boy, so I thought the little flowers in the sketch probably wouldn’t work for my card. I thought the cute little banners from Banner Banter would be perfect.

I stamped the background using the Hardwood stamp using Versamark ink. I thought that added a “manly” touch. And I used bright colors for the sentiment and banners — Crushed Curry, Island Indigo, Calypso Coral, and Old Olive. The sentiment is from one of the stamp sets included in a My Paper Pumpkin kit.

We hope you’ll join us and participate in the challenge. We love looking through the gallery each week and seeing what you make with each sketch. You should drop by the Freshly Made Sketches site to see what the design team made. They are always inspiring!

Enjoy your Wednesday! Thanks for stopping by!

Balloons Just for You — FMS187

Posted on May 20, 2015 by amyoneillblog

We have another new sketch over at the Freshly Made Sketches site for you today. And this week, the super talented Cindy Lovell has a great sketch for us:

I decided to use a little new and a little retiring product on my card. I started with the balloons from Balloon Bash, which is retiring in just two short weeks. I stamped them in new colors — Watermelon Wonder and Cucumber Crush. I stamped the focal panel using the new You’re So Sweet stamp set and Bermuda Bay and Crushed Curry ink.

The dsp is from a new paper pack that I LOVE, Cherry on Top. I added some sequins and a strip of Watermelon Wonder card stock and was finished.

We hope you’ll join us and play along with the challenge. We love seeing what you make. If you’d like a little inspiration, head on over to the Freshly Made Sketches site to see what the design team did with the sketch.

Enjoy your Wednesday! Thanks for stopping by!

Farewell to #Hello — FMS186

Posted on May 13, 2015 by amyoneillblog

It’s time for another challenge at Freshly Made Sketches. And this week the lovely Jen Brum is our hostess. This Canadian is so talented at making such fresh CAS cards. She always inspires me. Check out what she has for us:

I love this sketch! It’s trendy and clean. I’m continuing to use some of my retiring stamp sets, and I’ve used one of my favorites for this sketch, #Hello. I have really gotten good use of this set, and I will miss it.

I also used some new stuff on this card, including some new dsp, Cherry on Top, which I absolutely LOVE — the colors and patterns are so fun and fresh. And I’ve used one of the new In-Colors, Watermelon Wonder. I think I am going to be very good friends with this color.

We hope you’ll play along and join us this week over at Freshly Made Sketches in the gallery. Meanwhile, you can go find some inspiration over at the Freshly Made Sketches site and see what the design team made.

Enjoy your Wednesday! Thanks for stopping by!

A Mother’s Day Garden Party — FMS185

Posted on May 6, 2015 by amyoneillblog

It’s another Wednesday, and with each new Wednesday comes a new challenge at Freshly Made Sketches. This week, the super artistic Cindy Hall is our hostess and she has a great sketch for us.

I needed a card for Mother’s Day, so I decided to use the sketch to help with that. I used another retiring set, Garden Party, for the flowers and the newest Paper Pumpkin kit stamp set for the sentiment.

I think Mother’s Day should be a happy occasion, so I went with bright, happy colors — Coastal Cabana, Strawberry Slush, Daffodil Delight, and Pumpkin Pie.

I also used one of the Project Life grid cards on which to place the focal images.

We hope you’ll be able to play along and join us with this challenge. It’s always fun to look through the gallery and see how others use the sketch. Meanwhile, you should drop by the Freshly Made Sketches site to see what the design team made for some inspiration.

Enjoy your Wednesday! Thanks for stopping by!

Farewell Mosaics — FMS184

Posted on April 29, 2015 by amyoneillblog

It’s Wednesday and it’s time for another new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches. And this week the fabulous Kim Singdahlsen, is our hostess. She likes to live life on the edge (I don’t really know that), and so has designed her sketch accordingly (note how part of the sketch hangs over the edge of card base).

I’m trying to use as many of my retiring stamps as I can before they are gone for good. I pulled out Mosaic Madness for this card and some watercolor paper. I started by embossing three of the small images in the set with clear embossing powder and then I used my aquapainter and some Daffodil Delight ink to make the background.

The larger mosaic images were stamped with Strawberry Slush, Coastal
Cabana, and Pear Pizzazz inks and then punched out with the coordinating punch.

The sentiment is from another retiring set, Lots of Thanks. I added little rhinestones, which I colored with a black Sharpie, for embellishment.

We hope you’ll join us and play along with the challenge this week. It’s always fun to peruse the gallery and see what you make each week. You can go by the Freshly Made Sketches site to see what the rest of the team made for some inspiration.

Enjoy your Wednesday! Thanks for stopping by!

Good Thoughts — FMS183

Posted on April 22, 2015 by amyoneillblog

It’s time for another challenge at Freshly Made Sketches. This week the crazy talented Linda Callahan, who has the best sense of humor (though she might not have it right now while her home is undergoing a kitchen remodel — ;)), is our hostess. And I can’t wait to see what y’all do with this one.

I made this card before Stampin’ Up! released the retirement list. When I saw that Too Kind was included on the list yesterday, I was so sad. I love this set! Which ones are you going to miss most?

I decided I need to use the retiring In-Colors as much as possible before June arrives, so I used one for this card. These In-Colors are my favorite ones that they’ve ever had. I am really going to miss Coastal Cabana, Strawberry Slush and Crisp Cantaloupe. I can’t wait to see what the new In-Colors will be!

I used a color combination of Crisp Cantaloupe, Blushing Bride, and Old Olive. A couple of strips of washi tape are on the bottom of the card.

We hope you’ll join us and make your own card using the sketch this week. You can go by the Freshly Made Sketches site and see what the design team made for some inspiration. They always inspire me!

Enjoy your Wednesday! Thanks for stopping by!06

Hello, Flower Shop — FMS182

Posted on April 15, 2015 by amyoneillblog

It’s Wednesday, and it’s April 15. For those of us in the US, that it not a very fun day as it is the day when our annual income tax returns must be filed. I finished and clicked the “Send” button last night (yeah, I procrastinate when it comes to doing taxes), so I can relax today. Hopefully, you are done too and you can kick back and check out the new challenge over at Freshly Made Sketches. The super talented Rita Wright is our hostess this week and she has a great sketch for us. This one really leaves you lots of room to be creative.

I decided to use a flower set that was getting a little dusty on my shelf, Flower Shop. I stamped the flower three times and then colored them with my aquapainter. I added some splatters with a stamp that was included in a Paper Pumpkin set a long time ago.

I used a sentiment from Four You, and used two of my favorite In-Colors, which will soon be retiring — Coastal Cabana and Strawberry Slush. The other color is Daffodil Delight.

We hope you’ll join us and make your own card using the sketch. We do love to see what you create. Meanwhile, you can venture over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog to see what the design team made for some inspiration.

Enjoy your Wednesday, even though it is tax day. Thanks for stopping by!

Fern Wishes — FMS180

Posted on April 1, 2015 by amyoneillblog

It’s time for another sketch challenge over at Freshly Made Sketches. And this week the super talented Jennifer Timko is our hostess. Here is what she has for us:

This sketch had me stumped for a while. In fact, this is my third card with this sketch. The other two ended up in the wastebasket. But it’s good to have a challenge once in a while.

I immediately thought of using a doily for the semi-circle, but had no clue what to do with the rest of the card. I have barely used my Butterfly Basics stamp set, so I decided to get it out and play with it.

I stamped the fern with Calypso Coral ink and embossed the sentiment with Pool Party embossing powder. I added a little washi tape and a strip of dsp.

The design team didn’t appear to have any difficulties with this sketch, so you should go by the Freshly Made Sketches site and see what they’ve made this week. And then we hope you’ll make your own card and share it in the gallery with us. We love to see what you make!

Have a great Wednesday! Thanks for stopping by!