throwing down the gauntlet!

On Friday, Marit came by my blog for a visit and proposed that the both of us to do a piece this weekend for the current Scrapping the Music challenge (you know, since I didn't get one posted in time for the design team)! 

It was close enough to a dare to do it, especially because SHE DID!  And she managed to create 3 pieces, for both the song and the prompt!!!

WOWZA!  So impressive!

Here's what I came up with...I used pprs that came in my DT package from Frantic Stamper.  This is Bo Bunny's Hello Sunshine line!

If you're inspired, please go here or here for the song/prompt and get arting!!!   

This particular challenge is due by midnight, June 27.

Okeedoh! I haven't had anything to eat all day, gonna make some quinoa salad stat! 

 : .)

a bit dispirited...

Is it a bad thing that all I want to do is lay prostrate on the couch

and watch episode after episode of the Big Bang Theory?

I need a summer vacation,

or something...

OK, back to business!!!

Kathy posted a new sketch over at the Frantic Stamper blog on Sunday.

 I wanted to play with some new goodies I purchased recently, 

my Memory Box Chloe Butterfly

and a Couture Creations Waterfall embossing folder,

both used with my Big Shot die cutting machine. 

(I really like that thing!)

and I came up with this!!!

 Yeah, the photography isn't so great!  I took the pix at night...

Anywhoo, I thot it'd make a great high school graduation card... a metaphor for metamorphosis, right?!  Catepillar to butterfly to bright beautiful kid going out into the world.  But who to send it to?!

Ok...I still haven't made anything for the current Scrapping the Music challenge (P, I am a terrible friend!)  At least go over and check out the pretties that the rest of the design team made!  You could also go see the participant's submittals for the current song!  (Its a Good Life by One Republic) and prompt (What is your most memorable summertime song?  Whenever you hear it, what are the memories that come back to you?)  You won't be disappointed!!!

Would you call this "rust" or "sienna" or "burnt umber"?

The new Frantic Stamper sketch is up on the blog! 

Fran sent me some new Ranger Vintaj Patinas to play with.  These are permanent inks for non-porous surfaces.  All the videos on YouTube showed using the patinas with the Vintaj line of metal blanks, charms, and embossing folders, none of which I had.  During a quick brainstorm session with my friend Paul, he suggested I cut up an aluminum can to use.  That coupled with my Cuttlebug Floral Fantasy embossing folder, made the base piece so I could use the patinas. 

I was challenged here with colors that would go with "rust"...  I didn't want to go all tone-on-tone like I usually do, so I googled "rust color combos" and found this fantastic site ColorCombos.com, which showed  that "rust" went with "blue lynch".  Hummm, is that a standard color???

Anyway, I used rust and bleu grey cardstock, and the painted square with some wire and brads to make my sketch card:

: .)

By the way...Kathy also posted another card of mine on the blog on Friday.   You can go there, or you can read about it here : .P

This started out as a play on George Rodrigue's, The Blue Dog, but with a cat.  And y'all know me...I'm typically not happy with the first run of anything, so I made a "prototype":

It was too blue.  BORING...  And what the heck is up with that cartoon monster face on his chest?! 

After conferring and getting some artistic input from my graphic design friend (Michael) and one of my Starbuck's barristas/artist (Abel) I ended up with this:

(Desert Twilight/Southwestern "Its a sombrero"cat? [Abel]  Madonna  cat? [Paul] heh.)

Meow!!!

Hey, if you're inspired, do a sketch card and email it to  FranticStamperSketchPhotos@yahoo.com so Kathy can post it on the blog!!!  

Scrapping the Music - Whole Wide World

The challenge this round over at Scrapping the Music is Whole Wide World by Mindy Gledhill.  Such a cute girl power song and video...





The prompt for this round is "Is there a song you once shared or currently share with a special someone as 'your song' together?" 

STM is celebrating this 200th challenge (!!!) with a special event.  We have teamed up with Noel Mignon's Kit Club for the month of June!  What does that mean???  It means two things:

1.  Noel is sponsoring STM  this month with a gift certificate to her store for $20.00!  She's got awesome kits, and other fabulous scrappy goodies to choose from!  Click here to go to Noel's website, which includes the shop, blog, and a really cool and friendly online community.  All you have to do to be included in the drawing for this prize is complete a piece from the song or the prompt from the June 1st or June 15th challenge, and post it over at the  Scrapping the Music  blog : .)  
 
2.  We are honored to have the Noel Mignon Design Team playing along with us for the June 1st challenge! Welcome to Virginia Tillery, Jana Eubank, Gretchen McElveen and Kimberly Neddo!  Please go on over to the Scrapping the Music blog to see their creations, as well as those from the rest of the design team.

As for me... I took a a cue from one of my recent posts, I created this with some of the Whole Wild World lyrics...

I chose the lyrics because altho' I'm a low risk person, I try to be brave and I liked the reminder!  

I'm so happy when I don't struggle with lyrics (or the prompt) and when serendipity plays a fast one on me, in a good way of course.  I was looking through one of my art journals and found this page I had created awhile ago.  I had added the black swirly lines that are a signature of this artist, and then inspiration struck when I looked across my "craft space"  (you all know this as the "living room floor") and saw another of my Stampotique stamps, Moth Fab.  

Her dress and hair have similar swirls, so it was a perfect match to the art journal page...I stamped and embossed MF twice, once on white cardstock and then one on the decorated scrapbook paper that I used on the journal page.  From the decorated scrapbook paper, I cut out her hair and dress as those were the parts that repeated the swirls and glued them onto the white cs base.  Added a bit of detailing as blush, for her eyes, purse, and the fringe on the bottom of her dress, added some decorated sb ppr butterflies and voilá!!!  


I like it!!!


After all that, do please join us for the challenge, won't you?!  


: .)