Party Prop Anya Birthday Greeting

You may have noticed that I have posted a few cards with images from The Greeting Farm. I absolutely LOVE their images, They are for sure one of my top favorite images to color. I have like 6 of their rubber stamps and like 10 of their digis and every time I get some spare cash I buy more. I even find myself browsing eBay for retired ones. I am addicted. So the other day when I was browsing their website. I decided that maybe I should just subscribe to their blog. Of course I stumbled on a challenge. I've never been one to do challenges before because I don't feel like my cards are as good as other's, but I am finding that I like to do them, not to win, but because it provides inspiration. This week it was anything goes challenge, I read the terms and instantly this card design started working itself out in my mind. I have a couple Greeting Farm images that I had not used yet, so I decided to try one, and this is by far one of my fave's will be using her a lot more in my future I am sure.

So, without further ado, here she is....

You can buy your own copy of this lovely girl at the Greeting Farm Store.

As usual, I colored this girl with my Prismacolor pencils and Odorless Mineral Spirits.

And for anyone interested, Here is a shot of the inside.

Let me tell you, I had so much fun designing and making this card! I hope it provided you with some inspiration.

Love and Peace! Thanks for reading!

Nikki

Thanks a Latte - Tiddly Inks Design Team Call

So I am totally jumping out of my comfort zone and treading into scary territories. One of my favorite digital stamp designers is doing a design team call and I figured it wouldn't hurt to try, so here this is my entry post. The challenge is to make a card using your favorite Tiddly Inks Stamp. Let me tell you, it was hard to pick a favorite but I decided to use "thanks a latte" (you can purchase your own copy here at http://www.tiddlyinks.com/thanks-a-latte/.) I chose this image because it makes me think of one of my besties from college who shares my great love for coffee as well as crafting. She has since moved to Guam as a mission school teacher and I only see her once a year in the summer. I think I will send her this card after a bit.

So here is the card I made using this delightful image. 

I colored it with my favorite method of coloring, Prismacolor Pencils and odorless mineral spirits. Since the image made me think of my friend, I tried to color it to depict us sitting at one of our favorite coffee places. The girl on the left is supposed to represent my friend, and the girl on the right is supposed to represent me.  These are the colors I used.

For the girl on the left:
Skin: PC928 (Blush Pink) - PC1085 (Peach Beige) - PC927 (Lt. Peach) - PC1092 (Nectar)
Hair: PC997 (Beige) - PC914 (Creme) - PC942 (Yellow Ochre) - PC943 (Burnt Ochre)
Clothes: PC1099 (Espresso) PC931 (Dark Purple)

For the girl on the Right:
Skin: PC1083 (Putty Beige) - PC927 (Lt. Peach) - PC939 (Peach) - PC928 (Blush Pink)
Hair: PC1080 (Beige Sienna) - PC1081 (Chestnut) - PC937 (Tuscan Red)
Clothes: PC930 (Magenta) - PC1068 (10% French Grey)

For the Rest:
Chairs: PC905 (Aquamarine) - PC949 (Silver)
Table Cloth: PC905 (Aquamarine) - PC941 (Lt. Umber)
Cups: PC918 (Orange) - PC1070 (30% French Grey) - PC910 (True Green)

Here is a shot of the inside: I like leaving a large blank space so one could write a personal message. Sometimes I would put a scripture or inspirational saying, today I chose something about coffee.

 Well, wish me good luck on the DT call, and if you have a creative itch you need to satisfy here's the link to the DT call! Good luck if you try!

Java Girl Coffee Card

Well it is time for another card posting. I made this card for another girl in our church who is gone away to college. This stamp I got from The Greeting Farm made me think of her. I have a ton of stamps, some are about 20 years old, and some are new because I cannot quit buying them, but I am always at a loss of which stamp to use next. I decided one night while I was lying awake in bed that I should close my eyes and draw out a stamp each time I am ready for a new project, then put the ones I use into another box until I've drawn all my stamps. This helps me go through all my stamps and it also keeps me from doing similar cards over and over again. I have several drawers of stamps, one drawer is filled with wooden block stamps, one drawer is filled with unmounted rubber stamps, one with clear cling stamps, and a file on my computer filled with digital stamps. I rotate each drawer each time, this time I drew from my unmounted rubber stamps and this little girl was the stamp I drew.

When I draw a stamp I look at the image and try to decided what kind of card it will be, if I am going to use a fancy fold, if it makes me think of someone special, and what colors I am going to use to color it. Then I color it and then I work my scrap magic around it to create a card. I felt the colors were appropriate for the time of year, and the accessories I used seemed to fit the personality of the girl I was making it for. I did a hand written sentiment on the front because I felt it was more personal for someone I n my life, and I used my Cricut (r) to cut out the coffee image. The only thing I am not crazy about on this card is the bow. I struggle with making bows. I bought a bowdabra mini (r) over Christmas but haven't gotten much time to practice with it. If I follow the tutorials step for step, I am able to make something that at least resembles a bow, but I still have plenty of room for improvement.  Here is the inside.

I like that the inside of my cards resemble the outside pretty well. I feel it gives a personal touch to the cards and I like that the insides are just as pretty as the outsides.

Once again, thanks for reading!!

Nikki