Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #690

Hello!
Happy Wednesday! Hope you're having a great start to your week!  We are in desperate need of rain around here.  The smoke moved in on Saturday from the various wildfires taking place across our country right now.  Lots of northern cities are dealing with wildfires right now.  It's such a hard time of the year.  

We have a fabulous new sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the fabulous Karren Johnson!  Karren's cards are gorgeous!  Please head over to her blog and give her some love!  

That circle struck me as a sunflower so I pulled out the Lovely Layers Sunflower Honey Cuts by Honey Bee Stamps.  I grabbed my Distress Oxides and coloured away.  My woodgrain embossing folder was sitting out after last week's card so I decided to put it to good use again!  

Supplies:
Cardstock:  Hammermill White Coverstock, Early Espresso

Ink: Scattered Straw, 

Dies: Lovely Layers Sunflowers, Fossilized Amber, Gathered Twigs, Espresso (Distress Oxides)

Other: Hardwood Embossing Folder (SU), Curved Everyday Sentiments (Spellbinders), Copper Foil (Spellbinders)

Thanks for stopping by today!  I hope you'll join in our challenge this week!  Head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog to get inspired to create a masterpiece!  You have until Monday at 1 PM EST to get your card entered in this week's challenge!

Thought I'd share a few pictures from last weekend's hike.  The view from the top was incredible but the hike up and down left a little to be desired.  We had great weather though the smoke has started to roll in.  Fire season is starting early!

Have a wonderful day!

Jen

 

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #672

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  We are in a deep freeze here and it looks like it will stay cold for a while!  We have another couple of days of -20 degrees and then it will warm up a little bit.  We have been so fortunate so far so I won't complain!  When the sun is out, it's still beautiful and I enjoyed some nice walks over the weekend! 

We have a brand new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches this week!  Our hostess this week is the lovely Jacquie Southas!  Jacquie's cards are so pretty so please head over to her blog and give her some love!  

In my recent Stampin Up Order, I received the Friendly Seagulls stamp set.  I just couldn't resist them!  They're super fun!  I decided they would work for this card - but in hindsight I wish I hadn't attached them to the string.  What's done is done!  This card is for a friend of mine who loves french fries almost as much as I do!!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Hammermill Coverstock White

Stamps: Friendly Seagulls

Ink: Memento Black, Speckled Egg Distress Oxide, Antique Linen Distress Ink

Other: Copics, Stampin' Blends, Linen Thread (SU), Stitched Rectangles (Lil Inkers)

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll join in our challenge this week!  You have until Monday at 1 PM EST this week to enter this week's challenge. 

If you need some inspiration, head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog!  The design team has posted some fantastic cards posted!  

I hope you have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #650

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a wonderful week so far!  Today is actually my youngest son's 16th birthday!  I can't believe it.  It seems like just yesterday he came flying into the world 6 weeks early creating absolute chaos!  He was a very challenging baby and toddler but he is the sweetest and easiest going almost 16 year old!  I can't wait to see what this year brings!

We have a fantastic brand new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the lovely Judy Rozema!  Judy's cards area always beautiful so head over to her blog to check them out!  

I must admit this sketch stumped me!  I think it's because my brain is still longing for summer vacation!  Usually by this point I'm all over fall but I haven't got there yet for some reason!  Though I have purchased my first two pumpkins!!!  

I decided I would just grab some patterned paper and go from there!  I threw on a coneflower and a sentiment that was already foiled and called it a day.  Not one of my finest moments!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Lost Lagoon, Basic Black, Crushed Curry, Hammermill White Coverstock

Patterned Paper: Simple Stories Trail Mix

Dies: Lovely Layers Coneflowers Honey Cuts (Honey Bee Stamps)

Other: Hello Dear Friend (Spellbinders), Pink Foil (Spellbinders), Rhinestone Gems (Craft Consortium)

Thought I'd include some pictures from our bike and hike on Saturday.  The morning started out lovely - the clouds were low but there was still some blue sky.  Then as we started hiking the clouds got lower and we were trapped in it!  By the time we got to our destination - which was an alpine lake, we could only see about 20 feet in front of us.  By the time we were back at the car, the sun was out and the clouds had lifted.  Oh well.  Thankfully it wasn't a grueling hike and we are excited to give it a try again when the weather is cooperating!

Yup, that's a beautiful lake behind us!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and join in our challenge.  If you need some inspiration, you'll find it there as well!  You have until Monday at 1 PM EST to enter this week's challenge.

I hope you have an amazing week!
Jen

 

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #631

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great start to the week!  Did you get to see the eclipse this week?  We live on the Western side of Canada so we just saw a partial eclipse.  It didn't last long but it was still neat to see.  We had blue, cloudless skies so it was easy to see (with the special glasses of course!).

We've got a brand new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess is our favourite airline captain, Jen Timko!  Jen is an incredible card maker so head over to her blog and check them out!  Jen is also a great hiker - I can't wait to take her on our next adventure!!!

I wasn't sure what to do with this card.  I had every intention of using a Lovely Layers flower of some sort but that's not what happened!  I decided to keep it nice and simple!  I really like the flowers in the Spellbinders Garden Wreath Add-Ons set.  They're super easy to use!  I hot foiled a circle, cut it out and added a flower!  I used some rose gold foil to cut some leaves and hot foiled a rose gold sentiment then called it day!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Hammermill White Coverstock

Other: Garden Wreath Add Ons (Spellbinders), Be Bold Blooms (Spellbinders), Be Bold Sentiments (Spellbinders), Nested Circles (PinkFresh Studios), Monoline Stars Embossing Folder. 

We were able to get out for a hike last Wednesday.  The weather forecast wasn't looking good so we made sure we were out there for a 7 am start and we were able to get up to the "peak" and back down before the weather hit!  We had the most beautiful weather.  It was incredible  The sun was shining and air was warm!  It was wonderful.  It felt so good to get back out there.  It's "shoulder" season so the trails are muddy and icy and overall just gross.  We will have a few weeks of this before actual hiking season will begin!

Thank you so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and join in our challenge!  There are some great cards posted that will inspire you!  The Design Team did a great job this week! 

You have until Monday at 1 PM EST to enter into the challenge!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

 

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #630

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week!  It's spring break week here so my boys are off and loving it.  The boys went skiing yesterday (I had to work) and I think they had a blast!  I'm glad they're able to do a few days trips while they're off.  I'm hoping today we can get out for a hike but the weather is all over the map and they're calling for rain.  I don't even know the last time it rained (seriously, it barely rained a drop last year).  It's then supposed to snow tomorrow.  A little bit of each season this week!  We were in capris and tshirts on Monday and Tuesday!  Welcome to spring in Calgary!

We've got a great new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!  Judy Rozema is our amazing hostess this week.  You definitely need to head over to her blog and check out her cards!  They're always fantastic!  She's got such a fun sketch for us!

Shockingly I did struggle.  I know you're all surprised!  I really wanted to incorporate some different coloured flowers but couldn't figure out how to do it in a way I liked.  I'm not even sure I like the final product but this is what we're going with!  

Supplies:
Cardstock: Hammermill White Coverstock,  Pacific Point, Coastal Cabana, Mango Melody, Pineapple Punch, Pink Pirouette, Flirty Flamingo

Other: Softly Sophisticated Embossing Folder, Garden Wreath Add Ons (Spellbinders), Nested Essential Dies (SU), Hello Dear Friend Foil Transfer (Spellbinders), Turquoise Foil (Spellbinders), Glimmer Hot Foil Machine (Spellbinders)

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll join in our challenge this week!  We'd love to see what you come up with!  There are some amazing cards on our Freshly Made Sketches blog so make sure you head over there to find some inspiration!  

You have until Monday at 1 PM EST to enter into our challenge!  Winner will be announced Tuesday!

Have an amazing day!
Jen

 

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #586

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week so far!  The week started well here but yesterday the winds shifted and brought a huge amount of smoke in with it.  The smoke was so thick and the wind was so strong.  It was crazy.  My youngest was supposed to have a track and field meet but they had to cancel it due to the terrible air quality.  The wildfires here in Alberta have been so bad and we need rain so desperately.  The smoke is supposed to clear out through the day today so we're hoping it does.  I ran a few errands yesterday and when I came home my hair stunk like a very strong camp fire!  I stuck at video at the end of this post of the smoke.  Hopefully that worked - I'm not too tech savvy! 

Since it's Wednesday, that means we've got a brand new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is our favourite Californian, Jacquie Southas!  Jacquie creates the most beautiful card so please head over to her blog and check them out! 

So, my mom bought me this sweet paper pack for Mother's Day (we were able to see my parents briefly last weekend and it was wonderful!).  The paper is so pretty and as much as I hate to use it because I love it so much, I'm turning over a new leaf and actually using my paper!!!  

I threw on some bees and of course a Be Bold Bloom and called it a day!

Supplies:

Cardstock: Basic Black, Basic White, Marina Mist (I think), Daffodil Delight, Garden Green, Vellum

Paper: Bee Happy (Echo Park)

Ink: Crushed Curry, Garden Green

Other: Be Bold Blooms (Spellbinders), Modest Greetings 1 (Poppy Stamps), Beehive Dies (Sizzix), Hardwood Embossing Folder (SU), Silver Foil

Thanks so much for stopping by today.  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and join in our challenge!  The Design Team has created some amazing cards that will surely inspire you so we hope you'll play along with us!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

 

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #584

Hello!

Happy Wednesday!  I hope your week has started well!  We didn't get out hiking last weekend.  The avalanche risk in the mountains is extremely high right now and it just isn't worth the risk.  We will have to wait a couple more weeks since we've had unseasonably warm weather lately.  The snow should melt fast now though!  We're already trying to figure out where our next hike will be!

Since it's Wednesday that means we've got a brand new sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the fabulous Linda Callahan.  Linda is hilarious!  She's got a fantastic sense of humour and she makes incredible cards so head over to her blog and check them out!

I had to really force myself not to use the Be Bold Blooms!  I wanted to use the Lovely Layers Spring Greenery from Honey Bee Stamps instead.  I have seen a bunch of cards lately that have used those dies and they are gorgeous so I wanted to join in the fun! 

Supplies:

Cardstock: Highland Heather, Wild Wasabi, Basic White (all SU)

DSP: 6X6 Gingham paper pack (SU - retired)

Ink: Highland Heather, Garden Green (both SU)

Other: Dainty Diamonds Embossing Folder (SU), Lovely Layers Spring Greenery Honey Cuts (Honey Bee Stamps), Hello Dear Friend (Spellbinders), Gold Foil, Bee embellishment (SU), Gold Sequins

Thanks so much for stopping by today.  I hope you'll check out the Freshly Made Sketches blog and join in our challenge this week.  You will definitely find some inspiration over there!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

 

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #570

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week!  We are bracing ourselves for the polar vortex that's headed our way later this week.  I am not impressed though I guess it's winter and we shouldn't be surprised!  I guess I'll need to get betting out the medium weight winter coat for the next week or so.  Yes, when you live in Alberta you have several winter coats.  The light weight one (0 to -15) the medium one (-15 to -25) and then the heavy duty parka for colder than that.  Plus there's the ski coat.  And if you're a hiker you never put your winter coat away because some of those mountain peaks stay frosty all year round!!!!

We've got a brand new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches.  Jennifer Timko is hosting our party this week!  Her sketch is fantastic and I saw so many possibilities!  Makes sure you head over to Jen's blog to check out her gorgeous cards!  

I made a card with the Lovely Layers Winter Birds dies a few weeks ago!  Mr. Cardinal was so pretty but I wanted to have a go with the chickadee!  You don't get much cuter than a Chickadee!  I opted for a square card because my bird and branch fit better on a square than a rectangle.  I dug out some old SU DSP and went to town!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Basic White, Very Vanilla, Garden Green, Smoky Slate, Basic Black, Real Red, Wild Wasabi

DSP: Peaceful Prints

Other: Lovely Layers Winter Birds (Honey Bee Stamps), Lovely Layers Winter Greenery (Honey Bee Stamps), Posh Hello (Memory Box), Timber Embossing Folder (SU)

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  

I hope you will join in our challenge this week!  Head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog to check out what the Design Team has created!  I'm pretty sure you will be inspired!  

Have an amazing day!
Jen

 

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #557

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a good week!  We're still basking in the sunshine here and I will totally enjoy every minute of it!  The leaves have been beautiful and the views from our latest hike were incredible!  I'll post some photos below!  The mountain is called The Fortress and man it was tough but so amazing once we made it to the top!  My husband and I are also celebrating our 20th anniversary today!  I can't believe it's been 20 years!  Time flies!

We've got a great new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches this week!  Our hostess this week is Jacquie Southas!  Jacquie creates amazing cards and the one she's made this week is just incredible!  Head over to her blog to check it out!  

So the mojo definitely isn't flowing this week.  I had several different cards in mind but I tried to "get them down on paper" and that did not work.  I decided I would work with some plaid paper and add some leaves in - voila!  A fall'ish card!  Hoping the mojo decides to make an appearance at some point this week!!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Basic White, Rich Razzleberry, Mango Melody

DSP: Plaid Tidings

Other: Intricate Leaves Dies (SU), Stitched So Sweetly Dies (SU), Bitty Buzzwords Honey Cuts(Honey Bee Stamps)

Thanks so much for stopping by today! 
I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and join in our challenge!  We would love to see what you come up with!  The Design Team has some great cards posted to inspire your creativity!

Enjoy the views from The Fortress!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #549

Hello!

Happy Wednesday! I hope you're having a great week so far!  We're on vacation this week and we were supposed to be spending this week with my family in Ontario but due to the craziness of the airports right now and the very good chance that our flight home would be significantly delayed or cancelled we opted to postpone our trip to another time.  We're having a staycation here instead.  Monday we headed to Canmore for the most amazing golf game.  Yesterday my husband and I hiked up the most incredible ridge  (there are 7 peaks on this ridge and we were able to accomplish 6 of them!) and today we're heading into Banff and we're going to bike back to Canmore!  Can't wait to see this trail! 

 

It's Wednesday (I think) and we've got a fabulous new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the amazing Jen Timko!  Jen's cards are always so beautiful and she inspires me to be a better card maker!  Head over to her blog to check out her cards!  

I knew what I wanted to do for this card and was super excited to work with my sunflower dies again!  My neighbours have a sunflower garden out front and it's the cheeriest thing!  I just love seeing those little waving yellow heads!  

Supplies:

Cardstock: Early Espresso, Daffodil Delight, Garden Green, Copper Foil

Ink: Daffodil Delight, Garden Green

Other: Lovely Layers Sunflowers Honey Cuts (Honey Bee Stamps), Bitty Buzzwords Honey Cuts (Honey Bee Stamps), Dainty Diamonds Embossing Folder, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and join in our challenge!  The Design Team has some amazing inspiration on the blog for you!  

We can't wait to see what you create!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

 

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #532

Hello!

Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great start to your week!  We are just coming out of a crazy snow storm - I think it was going around a lot of places this week!  I am not a big fan of snow in April and I'm hoping that it doesn't last.  It's supposed to warm up so I'm hoping this is the end of it!  I don't know if I can take any more snow and winter!!!

We've got a great sketch at Freshly Made Sketches today courtesy of the super creative Kim Singdahlsen!  Kim's cards are always so fun and she has the best collection of dies!  Head over to her blog to check them out!

I had this sunflower sitting on my desk and needed to add it to a card and it fit onto this card perfectly!  I went with a white background because the other colours I tried just didn't look right.  I also thought the colours just stood out so nicely against the white!

Supplies:

Cardstock: Basic White, Daffodil Delight, Garden Green, Early Espresso, Copper Foil

Stamps: Special Moments

Ink: Basic Black

Other: Lovely Layers Sunflowers Honey Cuts (Honey Bee Stamps), Sweetly Stitched Dies, Tasteful Textile Embossing Folder, Flag Dies, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and join in our challenge!  The design team has put together some amazing cards for your inspiration!

Have an amazing day!

Jen

 

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #520

Hello!

Happy Wednesday!!  I hope you're having a great start to your week!  Can you believe we're in the last week of January already?  I normally find that January DRAGS on but for some reason I feel like I blinked and now it's almost over! Maybe it's because the weather has been fairly fantastic here!  I won't complain!  February, here we come!

We have a fabulous new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the super creative Jen Mitchell!  Jen creates gorgeous cards so be sure to head over to her blog to check them out!

Jen has a super fun sketch for us this week!  As soon as I saw it I knew I wanted that start to be a sunflower!  I had some sunflowers sitting on my desk and couldn't wait to use them!  

Supplies:

Cardstock: Daffodil Delight, Granny Apple Green, Early Espresso, Brushed Copper, Basic White, Vellum

DSP: In Good Taste, Brights 6X6 (Retired)

Ink: Daffodil Delight, Garden Green

Other: Subtle Texture Embossing Folder, Lovely Layers Sunflower HoneyCuts (Honey Bee Stamps), Bitty Buzzwords HoneyCuts (Honey Bee Stamps), Double Stitched Circle Dies,  Sequins

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and find some inspiration!  We can't wait to see what you create this week!

Have a fabulous day!

Jen

 

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #514

Hello!

Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week so far!  Can you believe it's already December!  Time is flying by and Christmas will be here before you know it.  How's your Christmas shopping coming along?  I think I'm pretty much finished.  I might need a couple of more stocking stuffers but we'll see.  

We have a great new sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is our favourite French card maker Cecile Ribon!  Cecile creates the sweetest cards so you need to head over to her blog to check them out!

I was stumped by this sketch for a while but then it came to me that I could make a cheery card with a sun!  We apparently live in the sunniest city in Canada but lots of others don't and this time of year can be quite dreary!  This card might just cheer someone up!

Supplies:

Cardstock: Basic White, Daffodil Delight, Basic Black

Stamps: Shine Bright (Reverse Confetti), Many Messages

Ink: Memento Black

Other: Sun and Clouds Confetti Cuts, Messages Die, Dimensionals, Sequins

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 have created!  

Have an amazing day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #489

Hello!

Happy Wednesday!  I hope you are having a great week!  It's been crazy hot and humid here and we're currently having a crazy rain storm!  I actually love rain storms - when I can watch them out the window!  Thankfully no one needs to use the BBQ at the moment!  We've hit the "one month until we move" mark!  I can't believe how fast the time is flying by.  I honestly think I'm in denial and it won't seem real until they pack the house and I board the plane!  I guess we'll see!!!

Meanwhile, we have a new challenge at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our hostess this week is the sweet but sassy Linda Callahan!  You'll love Linda's cards and her sense of humour so head over to her blog to check it out!  

I'll be the first to admit that I looked at this sketch ad nearly cried and now I look at it again and realize I didn't even really follow it!  Oh goodness.  Sometimes I make myself shake my head!  Anyhow, I wanted a simple and sweet card to send to someone after we move!  This does look a little Valentine's like doesn't it?  Oh well!!!!  It will be for someone I love!!!

Supplies:

Cardstock: Whisper White

DSP: Snail Mail

Stamps: Snailed It

Ink: Basic Black

Other: Snail Dies, Real Red Stampin' Blends, Brick Wall Embossing Folder, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you'll check out the gorgeous cards the Design Team has posted on the Freshly Made Sketches blog!  

Have an amazing day!

Jen