Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #416

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're all having a great week!  It's hard to believe that Christmas is only a week away!  Eek!  Are you ready?  I had been doing really well but my bronchitis came back with a vengeance and I am back on some antibiotics, an inhaler and some rest.  Hoping this clears up quickly!

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our challenge this week is a three week challenge so you have some extra time to work on your cards!  Our hostess this week is the amazing Amy O'Neill!  Amy is a colour and texture queen!  I just love her cards!  Head over to her blog to check them out!

I apologize for the dark picture and I'm going to attempt to take a better one tomorrow.  I was waiting for a bright, sunny day to take the picture but was resting yesterday afternoon and missed my window of opportunity.  Anyhow, I'll try and update it at some point!!!

I used the dot paper from the brights 6X6 DSP pack.  I originally didn't have an embossed panel but decided after the fact that it needed a little something so took the card apart and embossed the panel with the hammered metal embossing folder.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Gorgeous Grape
DSP: Brights 6X6 Paper Stack
Stamps: Essential Sentiments (MFT)
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Hammered Metal Embossing Folder, Botanical Builders Framelits, Basic Rhinestones

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll take a few minutes to hop on over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team ladies have created!

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #415

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great start to your week!  How's your Christmas shopping going?  I think I'm pretty much done except for a few stocking stuffers. Stockings are always the biggest challenge for me.  I tend to put a little too much thought into them!  I always like to find super fun or special stuff for the stockings.  Call me crazy!

Anyhow, we have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is our sweet friend Narelle Farrugia!  Narelle is our fussy cutting, layering flower queen!  Her cards are always gorgeous!

I wanted to create a non-Christmas card!  I am sending cards to my friend who's currently teaching up in Northern Ontario.  In her community 75% of the people don't have running water.  I can't even imagine.  It was -28C there this morning.  I can't even imagine going to an outhouse in that weather!

I used some of the Blueprints dies that I have from My Favourite Things.  I have no idea what # they are though!  I used some of the brights DSP paper pack (maybe from last year) and added some little flowers!  Pretty simple!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Calypso Coral,  Coastal Cabana
DSP: Brights 6X6 Paper Stack
Stamps: Hello Lovely (Concord & 9th)
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Small Flower Punch, Basic Rhinestones, Blueprints Dies (MFT), Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created!  You will definitely find some amazing inspiration!

Have an amazing day!
Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #414

Hello! Happy Wednesday!  It's good to be back again!  I missed last week.  I caught whatever it was that caused Caleb's pneumonia.  Thankfully I only ended up with bronchitis but I was still unmotivated creatively speaking so card making just didn't happen!!  Not only did card making not happen but neither did Christmas shopping or preparations!!!  Let's just say I'm trying to make up for lost time this week.

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the lovely and super talented Karren Johnson!  Karren's cards pretty much always take my breath away.  I just love her creativity and her colouring skills!  She is a force to reckon with!

Shockingly, this is the first card I made for this sketch!  It's crazy right?!  I saw the sketch and knew what I wanted to do.  I like it when cards come together like that!

I still need a few Christmas cards though as this point in time I'm not sure if they'll make it anywhere by Christmas!  Anyhow,  I love my Bethlehem edgelits and the Night in Bethlehem stamp set!  I just had to use it for this card.  I guess it does deviate from the sketch a bit but I'm pretty sure the team will forgive me!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Basic Black, Gold Shimmer
Stamps: Night in Bethlehem
Ink: Versamark
Other: Bethlehem Edgelits, Dimesnionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created!  They are some beautiful this week!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #412

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week so far!  Can you believe we're more than halfway through November?  Are you ready for Christmas?  I am totally not ready at all.  I've purchased some gifts but I'm nowhere near ready to go.  I have never felt this far behind.  Just trying to take one day at a time!!

We have a brand new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  I have the privilege of being this week's hostess.  I always worry that I'll make a sketch that no one likes or wants to participate with so I try and design ones that are broad and can be interpreted in different ways!

I am behind on Christmas cards (of course!) so I decided I needed a sketch that could incorporate Christmas!  I must admit though that this is not he first card.  I know, you're totally not shocked by that confession!!  I made my card and wasn't totally satisfied.  I was looking at my Christmas stamp sets and saw this star and knew it would work perfectly!

Supples:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Silver
Stamps: Bright and Beautiful,  Festival of Trees
Ink: Versamark
Other: Silver Embossing Powder, Sequins (Taylored Expressions), Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the amazing cards the Design Team has created!  You will definitely be inspired!  I can't wait to see what you come up with!

Have an amazing day!
Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #411

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  How's your week starting?  Our week started with a pile of SNOW!  I must say I am not impressed.  We normally don't get this much snow until after Christmas down in Southern Ontario.  I hate snow.  Yes, I'm Canadian, born and raised but I really don't like snow or cold.  I guess I also don't like the thoughts of having 6 more months of winter.  My family however is over the moon with the snow!  Strange lot they are!

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the incredible Kim Singdahlsen!  Kim's cards are always amazing!  I love her creativity.  Head over to her blog and check out her beautiful creations!

Okay so I'm sure you can guess how many times I had to make this card before I made one I liked!  I'm still not totally impressed with the finished product!  I do need a few more Christmas cards so I'm trying to get those done.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Gray Granite, Cherry Cobbler, Whisper White
DSP: Festive Farmhouse
Stamps: Christmas Gleaming, Bright Hopes
Ink: Versamark, Cherry Cobbler
Other: Ornament Gleaming Punch Pack, Hammered Metal Embossing Folder, Silver Embossing Powder, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created!  You will totally be inspired to join in our challenge this week!

Have an amazing day!
Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #410

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week so far!  We are having an interesting week for sure!  Caleb started getting sick last Monday but then didn't really get better.  We took him to the walk in clinic on Saturday and they said it was viral and to wait it out.  By Monday I knew there was something a little more serious going on.  Sure enough, Caleb has pneumonia.  We're just over 24 hours into the antibiotics and slowly starting to see some improvements.  Hopefully over the next day or so we start to see some great changes!

We have a great sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches courtesy of the amazing and super punny Linda Callahan!  Linda creates darling cards and always posts super sweet pictures of her grandchildren!  Head over to her blog to check them out!

So these squares may as well have been circles.  I struggled with the squares.  A lot.  This isn't the first card.  The first card I made is still on my craft room desk in the heap of shame!  I don't now why I struggled but I did.  I'm still not over thrilled with the final product.  I just couldn't get the square in the background to look right.  Trust me when I say that I tried a whole host of different colours!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Balmy Blue, Night of Navy, Whisper White
DSP: Gingham DSP Stack
Stamps:
Ink: Stazon Black
Other: Bitty Flower Punch, Scalloped Square Die, Stitched Squares (Lil Inkers), Stitched Hearts Banner, Basic Rhinestones, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today.  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created to inspire you!

We can't wait to see what you come up with!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #409

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week!  I've been volunteering at a conference so this week has been a bit of a blur so far!!!

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the amazing and super creative Jen Mitchell!  Jen creates these gorgeous CAS cards!  I always love them!  Head over to her blog to check them out!

I knew I wanted to use this paper when I saw the sketch.  I am trying to get some Christmas cards done so thought this would work perfectly.  I used a larger piece of DSP since I wanted to capture a lot of the pattern!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Mossy Meadow, Very Vanilla, Copper Foil
DSP: Brightly Gleaming Specialty DSP
Stamps: Christmas Gleaming
Ink: Mossy Meadow
Other: Stitched Circle Dies (Spellbinders),  Copper Thread, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the amazing cards the Design Team has created for you!!!  You won't be disappointed!

Have an amazing day!

Jen!

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #408

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great start to your week!  I'm just looking out the window at my maple tree that is a blazing red!  It's so glorious!  I wish they could stay this colour all year!  Don't get me wrong, I like green trees but the red just stand out so nicely (and it's almost one of my favourite colours!).

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess is the amazing Jennifer Timko!  Jen is our resident pilot and colour artist!  I am always in awe with the gorgeous cards and projects she creates!  Head over to her blog to check them out!

I kinda know what I wanted my card to look like when I started making it.  Thankfully.  Now, looking at the picture I wish I had matted the DSP with some copper foil but I didn't and there's not much I can do about it now!!  I love this DSP from the Brightly Gleaning Specialty DSP pack.  All that copper foil makes my heart happy!  I paired with some Night of Navy cardstock and the Hammered Metal Embossing Folder and voila!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Night of Navy, Copper Foil
DSP: Brightly Gleaning Specialty
Stamps: Christmas Gleaning
Ink: Night of Navy
Other: Hammered Metal 3D Embossing Folder, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has made.  You definitely will be thankful you did!  They are incredible!

Have an amazing day!
Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #407

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I can't believe it's Wednesday already!  We had an amazing Thanksgiving weekend!  I love turkey and thoroughly enjoyed stuffing myself full of that juicy goodness!!  We had an extra long weekend since the kids and Trevor were off on Friday.  It was perfect! Nice and relaxing and we had amazing weather!  The fall leaves look so pretty when the sun shines on them!  I wish they could last forever!

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the super creative Lee Ann Barrett!  Lee Ann makes such lovely cards.  You need to head over to her blog to check them out!!

Okay so this card didn't quite come together as quickly as I had wanted it to and this of course isn't the first card I made but that's okay!  I needed an anniversary card for my husband.  We celebrated our 17th anniversary on Saturday!  I can't believe it's been 17 years.  I'm not sure who deserves the medal more!!!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Red Foil
Stamps: Essential Sentiments (MFT),  So You
Ink: Stazon Black
Other: Heart to Heart Punch, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created!  You will definitely feel inspired!  We can't wait to see what you create!

Have an amazing week!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #406

Happy Wednesday!  I trust you're having a great start to your week!  We are heading into Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada which means my brain is gearing up to spend the entire weekend standing in the kitchen!!!  We shall see how that goes.  I was recently told I have a Stage 1 bunion and what the chiropodist believes is bursitis in both feet.  Thankfully it's clearing up nicely so I'm praying that the Thanksgiving cooking doesn't put me over the edge!!!  Turkey makes everything better though right??!!!

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the super creative Jacquie Southas!  Jacquie makes the most amazing clean and simple cards that look anything but simple!  She's super creative!  Head over to her blog to check them out!

I'm going to be honest.  At first when I saw those circles I thought to myself "circles are nothing, I've got this".  Well, they threw me for a loop.  Every shape and thing I tried did NOT work.  I was getting very frustrated.  There's a card somewhere downstairs with three very large acorns on it. It's very nutty looking!!!  Anyhow, I finally decided that butterflies always solve the problem so I pulled out my favourite butterfly dies from Taylored Expressions!  I then "painted" the butterflies with a little Wink of Stella because they needed a little something!!!

Supplies:

Cardstock: Kraft, Whisper White

Stamps: LJD Birthday Greetings (MFT)

Ink: Stazon Black

Other: In Flight Overlays (Taylored Expressions), Stitched Rectangles (Lil' Inkers),  Wink of Stella, Basic Rhinestones, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the amazing cards the Design Team have created to inspire you!

Have an incredible day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #405

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I'm so sorry that this post is late coming to you!  Normally I do my posts Tuesday evening but we were without power last night, for a LONG time and I wasn't able to get on the internet!  Anyhow, power is back, all is well and I need to get this post done!!!

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the amazing Judy Rozema!  Judy's cards are just gorgeous!  I love her design style!  It's so fun!  Head over to her blog to check it out!!!

I love the new ornaments in the Christmas Gleaming stamp set.  They are so fun to work with and I knew they would work perfectly with this sketch.  I actually made several cards with them!  I opted for some copper embossing powder in the second and third cards!  I love that powder!!  I was trying to figure out how many different cards I could make with this stamp set!!!

 

Supplies:
Cardstock:  Whisper White
Stamps: Christmas Gleaming
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Gleaming Ornaments Punch Pack, Sequins, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created for you!  We can't wait to see what you create with the sketch!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #404

Happy Wednesday!  It's Wednesday already!!!  Yay!!!  I actually love Wednesdays!  They're my "at home" day!  I usually spent the morning cleaning the bathrooms and vacuuming.  I know, really exciting!!!  I actually have to hit a grocery store today because we are out of cucumbers and Jacob LOVES cucumbers.  He would eat a cucumber a day if you let him!  I guess I can't complain!  We're heading to our first (and probably last) Toronto Maple Leaf's game tonight!  It's a pre-season game and we decided this would be our one big winter treat - in September!!!  The kids are super excited!!

Okay, so we have a brand new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches! Our hostess this week our our Texan friend Amy O'Neill!  Amy is our colour-matching, element placing queen!  Head over to her blog to check out her gorgeous creations!

So shockingly, I knew what I wanted to do with this sketch right away!  I needed a wedding card for the wedding we attended last Friday evening and this was going to be it!  I love the Modern Heart Stamp Set from Stampin' Up so that was my go to for that massive oval (which is almost as bad as a massive circle!).

I used some silver embossing powder, threw on some bling and I was good to go!  That pretty much never happens so I was impressed!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Basic Black, Silver Foil
Stamps: Modern Heart (SU), Essential Sentiments (MFT)
Ink: Versamark
Other: Silver Embossing Powder, Frosted Epoxy Drops, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created for your inspiration!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #403

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I trust you're having a great week so far!  Some of you know I have a bit of an obsession with pumpkins!  Like a total love for them!  I could buy hundreds!  I don't.  I limit myself to one or two a year!  I've already bought one this year and I just ordered a tiny little one from a friend who is going to knit it for me!  Anyhow, my pumpkins made their annual appearance yesterday and I was so excited about it.  However, when Jacob (our 11 year old) came home from school he promptly saw the pumpkins, rolled his eyes and told me I just ruined our house with pumpkins.  That child.  Needless to say I was slightly crushed!!!

Anyhow, being Wednesday, we have a great new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the creative Narelle Farrugia!  Narella is our resident Aussie and fussy cutter!  I am always amazed at the things she cuts out and she seriously must have the patience of a saint!

I kinda knew what I wanted to do for this card but it took me a few times to get it to work!  I also had to reverse the sketch because the holly and berries didn't quite look right on the other side.  They looked upside down or something.  Regardless, I switched it up a little!

I threw some ribbon in there from the Come To Gather ribbon pack.  I sure love kraft coloured ribbon and it seemed to work for this card!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Cherry Cobbler
Stamps: Christmas Gleaming
Ink: Basic Black, Memento Black
Other: Come to Gather Ribbon, Softly Falling Embossing Folder, Stampin' Blends, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created!  They are definitely inspiring!

Have an amazing day!
Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #402

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're week has started well!  Our kids are transitioning well into school. They seem to like their teachers and classes.  The homework and projects have started already.  I'm not sure I'm quite ready for that yet!

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the amazing Karren Johnson!  Karren is the queen of colouring and I love the cards she creates!  Head over to her blog to check them out!

As soon as I saw Karren's sketch I knew the card that I wanted to make!  I had the Reverse Confetti Fall Foliage stamp set on my desk from another project so I knew I wanted to use it for this card too! I love fall cards!  I could make them all year long.  It's really the colours I love.  Those browns, rusts, deep yellows and oranges!  They make me happy!  I kinda think tomorrow my fall decorations might come out for the season!!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Mango Medley, Early Espresso, Kraft
Patterned Paper: Pumpkin Spice from Michaels
Stamps: Fall Foliage (Reverse Confetti), Essential Sentiments (MFT)
Ink: Early Espresso
Other: Fall Foliage Confetti Cuts (Reverse Confetti), Sequins (Taylored Expressions), Dimensionals

Thanks again for stopping by and saying hi!
I hope you'll take the time to head over to the Freshly Made Sketches Blog so you can be wowed by the cards the Design Team created!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #401

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week so far!  We "celebrated" the first day of school yesterday!  It was a good day for the boys!  They both are happy with their classes and I'm sure they will have good years!  The summer flew by and I can't believe we're already into September!

A huge thank you to everyone who participated in last week's 400th Sketch Challenge at Freshly Made Sketches!  There were so many beautiful cards!

We have a great new sketch this week!  Our hostess is the amazingly creative Cecile Ribon!  Cecile's cards are always gorgeous and I'm jealous of her collections of dies!!
 

I bought a really fun paper pack from Michael's last week when I was at my mom's.  I've been creating some Gratitude journals with this paper and I have some scraps that I decided would be perfect for this fall card!  As much as I hate that summer is over, I love fall and fall colours!

I love the Layering Leaves dies from Concord & 9th so I used those and the fun fall sentiment, threw on some sequins and called it a day!  Actually, to be quite honest, the leaves which are now copper foil were originally orange and green but they didn't look quite right so after a day of staring at the card, I changed them to copper and feel better about the end result!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Kraft, Mango Medley, Whisper White, Basic Black, Copper Foil
Patterned Paper: Pumpkin Spice Paper Pack (Michael's)
Stamps: Give Thanks (Concord & 9th)
Ink: Pumpkin Pie
Other: Layering Leaves Dies (Condord & 9th), Circle Dies, Sequins (Taylored Expressions), Dimensionals

Thanks again for stopping by!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created!  They're just beautiful!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #400!!!

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week!  We're enjoying our last week of summer before school starts next Tuesday!  The 2 boys and I are spending the week with my mom and dad and enjoying some special time with them.  There is always delicious food here - including our favourite desserts!  I'm pretty sure I gain at least 5 lbs every time I come!!!

We have a brand new and fabulous sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  This is the final week celebrating our 400th sketch!  400 sketches!  I can't believe it.  How did we get to 400 sketches!  This is an incredible week to join along because we have some amazing sponsors who have jumped on board to help us out!  

Our prize winners will be chosen randomly from our gallery this week.  Once chosen, we will contact you via the information we have in our linky and post here on our blog.  You will have 5 days to respond or we will choose another recipient.  

• CAS-ual Fridays Stamps: $25 Gift Code
• Concord & 9th:  $25 Gift Code
• Ellen Hutson:  $25 Gift Code
• Hero Arts:  $25 Gift Code
• Lawn Fawn:  $25 Gift Code
• Neat & Tangled:  $25 Gift Code
• Newton's Nook Designs:  $25 Store Credit
• Reverse Confetti:  $25 Gift Code
• Simon Says Stamp:  $25 Gift Code
• Sugar Pea Designs:  $25 Gift Certificate
• Taylored Expressions:  $25 Gift Code
• Uniko:  Clear Stamp Set (In stock, any value)

A huge thank you to these generous companies for your support!

Supplies:

Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Early Espresso, Copper Foil

Stamps: Itty Bitty Birthdays

Ink: Early Espresso

Other: Pinewood Planks Embossing Folder, Seasonal Layers Dies, Dimensionals

Thank you so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the amazing cards the Design Team has created for your inspiration!

We can't wait to see what you come up with and hope you'll join in our amazing challenge this week!!!  

Have a fantastic week!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #400

Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great start to your week!  For those of you who have kids who have started school already, I hope the beginning has gone well!  We have another week and a half off and I am totally going to soak that in.  I'm not ready for summer to be over.  It was far too short and our school year seems far too long!

We have another great sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches celebrating our 400th sketch!  This week we're celebrating using Sketch #300

I have not felt at all creative these days.  It's been rather discouraging.  I sit in my craft room and just stare at everything.  I really struggled to make this card as well but it had to be done!  It's for Jacob who is celebrating his 11th birthday TODAY!  I can't believe my baby is 11!  He's on a huge space kick right now.  When we were in Orlando a few weeks ago, we were able to see a rocket launch.  It was the most unbelievable experience and the look on his face watching that rocket launch was priceless.

Anyhow, I remembered I had this rocket stamp set from PTI and knew it would be perfect to make his card.  I coloured the rocket up with some Stampin' Blends and picked some colours that I thought would look good together.

Supplies
Cardstock: Basic Black. Real Red, Whisper White, Silver Foil, Silver Glimmer
DSP: Brights 6X6 Stack
Stamps: Boy Basics: Out of this World (PTI)
Ink: Memento Black, Versamark
Other:  Star Dies, Stitched Circles, Silver Embossing Powder, Stampin' Blends, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created to inspire you!

Have an amazing week!

Jen!

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #400!!!

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week so far!  Can you believe that we're already at the beginning of August?!  How does that happen?  I know some of our American friends have kids heading back to school very soon and some within the next few weeks.  I"m very thankful that we are "free" until after labour day!

It is a VERY special day at Freshly Made Sketches!  Today is our 400th sketch!  400!!!  I can't believe it.  I couldn't remember when I joined in so I went back and figured it out!  June 2012!  My first sketch with the best team ever was #37!  I'm shocked they've kept me around this long!!!

In honour of our 400th sketch we are revisiting some of our first sketches!  This is sketch #1!!  How many of you participated in our very first challenge?!  For the rest of the month we'll be celebrating using our old sketches!  I can't wait!

Head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog to get more of the juicy details!

Okay, as you can see I had a few problems sticking to the sketch!  Now don't get me wrong, I totally didn't do this on purpose.  I actually totally didn't notice that the sentiment should go at the bottom!!! I'm hoping you'll forgive me!!!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Basic Black, Daffodil Delight
DSP: Botanical Butterfly, Brights DSP Stack
Stamps: Itty Bitty Birthdays
Ink: Memento Black
Other: Subtle Texture Embossing Folder, Daisies #2 Dies, Circle Punches, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches page to check out the incredible cards the Design Team has created!  I hope you'll be inspired and join us in this celebratory challenge!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #399

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having great start to your week! We've had a restful and relaxing week so far.  It's been really nice.  After a busy weekend and some hectic weeks, it's nice to have one that is a little more laid back.  There was some room cleaning and reading for the boys today!  They're starting to help me more in the kitchen which is nice.  Hopefully their culinary skills will improve over the next few weeks!

We have a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches this week.  I am this week's hostess!  It's always a treat to be the hostess and check out everyone's cards.  I am always amazed at how different all of the cards are!  I decided to go with a very square sketch this week!  If you don't like squares, you can always use another shape!

I decided to go for a mostly white card!  I used some silver butterflies that were already sitting on my desk!  One of my jobs this week is to clean my craft room up.  I'm hoping to get that done tomorrow. We shall see.  I keep putting it off!!

I tried making my three little squares just from plain white paper but they looked too plain so a little embossing was in order!  I used the Mosaic embossing folder since that was what was handiest!!  I embossed the sentiment in Silver (though I often fight with my silver embossing powder - it always makes a mess)!  Voila, a completed card!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Silver Foil
Stamps: LJD Birthday Greetings (MFT)
Ink: Versamark
Other: Mosaic Embossing Folder, Stitched Squares (Lil Inkers), Little Bits - Butterflies (Taylored Expressions), Silver Embossing Powder, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created for your inspiration!  They are truly incredible!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #398

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a fantastic week so far!  We are finally done camps and it's a week of relaxing and adventures at our house.  The boys are a little bored but that's okay. Being bored is good for them!  They'll figure out some stuff to do.  We have made a few trips to the library and Jacob has loaded up on space encyclopedias.  He's obsessed with space.  It's amazing how much information kids can cram into their brains!  I only wish I could still remember that much info!

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches courtesy of our French designer Cecile Ribon!  Cecile's cards are so gorgeous, her die cut collection is to "die" for and she is super creative.

I had received this Modern Heart stamp set from Stampin' Up last week and decided that it would be perfect for this sketch!  I decided to use some ink that I haven't used before so grabbed the Gorgeous Grape and I was off to the races.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White
Stamps: Modern Heart
Ink: Versamark, Gorgeous Grape
Other: Gold Embossing Powder, Sequins, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog to check out the amazing cards the Designers have created to inspire you!

Have an amazing week!
Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #397

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week so far!  We had our church kids camp last week.  It was the most amazing week ever.  It was the most tiring week ever but wow, was it fun.  850  kids, 350 workers and a whole lot of smiles!  Can't wait for next year!

We have a brand new and fantastic sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the lovely Kim Singdahlsen.  Kim creates such gorgeous cards and I'm always taking note of what supplies she's using and building a wish list!  Maybe don't tell my husband that!!!

Kim's sketch was a little tricky until I realized I had these poppies (uncoloured) sitting on my desk from another card attempt!  I decided instead of colouring them red, I would colour them yellow instead!  For today, they're yellow poppies!

I must say the Stampin' Blends did great and I was able to combine 4 markers instead of just the normal 2!  I believe this was Daffodil Delight and Mango Medley but I could be very wrong!  It may be So Saffron and Mango Medley!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whipser White, Basic Grey
DSP: Brights 6X6 DSP Stack
Stamps: LJD Delicate Pretty Poppies (MFT)
Ink: Memento, Versamark
Other: LJD Pretty Poppies Dies (MFT), Stampin' Blends, Mosaic 3D Embossing Folder, Silver Embossing Powder, Stitched Flags

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created for your inspiration!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #395

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great start to your week!  We finally have summer vacation starting here!  Yay!  It's about time!  Making lunches was never the thing that I hated - it was washing all those containers.  The boys make their own lunches so it's not a lot of work for me but washing the containers when they come home from school is my job.  One of my more loathed jobs (along with dusting, I hate dusting).  Anyhow, it was so nice not to have to wash all those containers tonight!!!

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the amazing Jen Mitchell!  Jen is super creative.  She comes up with the most elegant clean designs.  I just love them.  Head over to her blog to check them out!

Soooo....do you see that giant circle?!  I must say I'm not a big fan.  At all.  Like not at all.  It's huge.  I had no idea what to do but remembered that I had the "So Very Special" set from Reverse Confetti and knew it would work perfectly in this giant circle!

I opted for pink and black because I think they really do look fun together!  I used the sequin embossing folder from SU for the background because the card needed a little something!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Melon Mambo, Basic Black, Whisper White, Black Foil, Silver Foil
DSP: It's the SU butterfly one...sorry I can't remember the name!
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Stitched Circle Dies (Lil Inkers), Sequin Embossing Folder (SU), Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created!  You definitely won't be disappointed!  They're just beautiful!

Have an amazing day!
Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #394

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week so far!  School is almost done here - finally! I  can't wait!  I am excited for school and lunches to be done with!  Bring on summer holidays!  The kids are so done!  I am not sure why we even bother going this week.  I'm not sure they're even doing anything!

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the amazing Jen Timko!  I love Jen's cards.  Her colouring is fantastic and she is so creative.  You need to head over to her blog and check them out.

I struggled a bit with this card. I am not completely satisfied with the outcome but that's okay.  I also realized that I totally should have taken the picture landscape.  I don't know what I was thinking when I took the photo!  I find sympathy cards are hard to make and this one was especially hard for me!  I had to haul out the Botanical Builders Dies.  Though retired, they are my favourite flowers ever and I will continue to use them!  I added a sentiment from Sentiment Essentials (Reverse Confetti).  I went with a neutral Kraft background this time!  Wow, it's hard for me to change like that - every ounce of me wanted to do white!!!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Kraft, Whisper White
DSP: Gingham
Stamps: Sentiment Essentials
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Sentiment Essentials Dies, Botanical Builders Dies, Enamel Dots, Dimensionals

Thanks again for stoping by!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches page and check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created!  You will love them!

Have an amazing day!
Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #393

Hello!
Happy Wednesday! I hope you're having a great week!  We finally have some relatively warm weather which is fantastic!  I still haven't worn shorts yet but that's because I'm always cold!!!  Actually, I don't really own shorts anymore!  I've progressed to skorts!  I guess I'm officially old!  Anyhow, we're almost done school here.  We like to drag it out as long as possible to torture kids and parents!  My boys checked out about a week ago so they're finding it hard to focus all day at school!  Oh the joys of June!

Anyhow, we have a fantastic sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches courtesy of the amazingly talented Lee Ann Barrett!  I just love Lee Ann's cards!  She creates the most beautiful scenes and her colouring is fantastic.  Head over to her blog to check them out!

I kinda knew what I wanted to do for this card.  Of course there was a first edition and a second edition and then I settled on this one!  This cake was sitting on my desk from a previous attempt at a card so I decided I couldn't get it go to waste!  You never let cake go to waste!

It wasn't until I uploaded my card to the Design Team site that I realized I had my sentiment in the wrong place.  Sorry ladies.  I didn't even realize.  Hopefully they'll forgive me!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Early Espresso, Kraft
Stamps: Inside Scoop (Taylored Expressions)
Ink: Early Espresso
Other: Build a Cake Dies (Taylored Expressions), Scalloped Edge Die, Wink of Stella, Sequins (Taylored Expressions)

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog to check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has created for you!  You will definitely be amazed!

Have an incredible week!

Jen