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

Flowerly Thanks

Hello!
I hope you've had a great start to your week!  It was a quieter day around our house today.  Caleb went to his first day of Goalie (hockey) camp!  He was exhausted when I brought him home.  He will be some tired tomorrow when he gets up!

I made a quick card up for a friend.  She requested a few thank you and birthday cards and while I have a stack of birthday cards, the thank you cards were lacking!  I saw the sketch at CAS(E) This Sketch and thought I'd give it a whirl.

The sketch is a little intimidating but I had just received the Botanical Builders stamps and dies and I couldn't wait to use them so decided to try and make it work for this sketch!  I added a little Wink of Stella to the flower's centres.  Who doesn't love a little sparkle?!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Calypso Coral, Smokey Slate
DSP: A Little Foxy DSP Stack
Stamps: In a Big Way (Reverse Confetti)
Ink: Smokey Slate
Other: Botanical Builders Dies, Basic Rhinestones, Wink of Stella, Dimensionals

Thanks for stopping by today!  I hope you have a fabulous day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #228

 

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week!  It's March break here in Ontario and we are currently enjoying a relaxing week with my mom and dad!  The boys are in Grannie and Papa heaven!  There is a lot of driveway hockey (when it's not raining) and some intense games of Monopoly going on here!  I'm so thankful for a Papa who loves hanging out with his boys!

We have a great new sketch today at Freshly Made Sketches courtesy of Kim Singdahlsen.  Kim is amazing.  I love Kim's creativity and she is one of the leading enablers on our team! 



I knew right away that I wanted to use the Dot Spots stamp set from PTI when I saw this sketch.  No, this giant circle didn't terrify me at all.  Maybe because it's not an entire circle!!!  I stamped the circle using Pool Party and Bermuda Bay ink.  I used some Dazzling Diamonds to add a little sparkle!  We all need a little sparkle in our lives!  Now, I put my sentiment in the wrong spot.  I feel really badly about this.  I noticed it just before I left to visit my mom and dad and didn't have time to change it!  Thankfully I'm on the most forgiving Design Team and the girls are letting me stay!!


Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Bermuda Bay
Stamps: Dot Spot (PTI), In a Big Way (Reverse Confetti)
Ink: Stazon Black, Pool Party, Bermuda Bay
Other: Dazzling Diamonds, Dimensionals


Thanks again for stopping by!  I hope you will head on over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the fabulous cards the design team has come up with!  You'll be glad you did!


Have a fabulous day!
Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #217

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  Only a few more days until Christmas!  Can you believe it?!  Seriously, the days are whipping by!  Jacob's Christmas concert is today at school!  Last night at 8:15 he announced that he needs a Santa hat and sunglasses for said concert.  We have one Santa hat in our house and it belongs to Jacob's older brother.  Needless to say when I suggested he wear his older brother's hat, said older brother had a few things to say about that.  Oh goodness.  The fun never stops!

We have a brand new sketch today at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our amazing hostess this week is Linda Callahan!  Linda makes such beautiful cards and I totally love her sense of humour!  She keeps me laughing!  You need to check out her blog as soon as you're done reading this!

I struggled a bit with this giant rectangle!  I think it was mainly because I just didn't feel like using any of my stamps!  Oh well!  I decided to use my "In a Big Way" from Lil' Inkers instead!  I kinda had a little accident with the stamp when I inked it and the "eat cake" portion didn't stamp right.  Needless to say I opted to cover it with a banner rather than re-stamping it!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Basic Black, Melon Mambo
Stamps: In A Big Way (Lil' Inkers)
Ink: Stazon Black
Other: Stitched Rectangles (Lil' Inkers), Double Banner Garland Die (Reverse Confetti), Basic Rhinestones, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you'll head on over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the beautiful cards the Design Team has created!  You sure won't be disappointed!  Please remember that we are now taking a break until January so you have until January 4th to enter our challenge!  Our next new sketch will be coming your way on January 6th!

Have a great week and a Merry Christmas!

Jen

Fusion Wishes

Hello!
Happy Sunday!  It's a gorgeous day here!  Bright, sunny and warm!  The pool is being heated today for one last dip today and tomorrow.  Probably be the nicest weekend of the fall.  The leaves are slowly turning and look radiant in this beautiful sunshine!  I think tomorrow we'll try some family pictures.  They will be impromptu and the clothes won't match perfectly but they'll hopefully reflect us as a family and how much we love each other!  It's also our 13th anniversary tomorrow.  Fitting maybe to take some pictures!!!

Today's card is for this week's Fusion Card Challenge.  I loved the picture and the sketch and I'll be honest, I think I bombed both!!!!

I totally forgot the bottom panel of the sketch and the little circle behind the feathers.  I'm losing it I tell you!  I think the problem was that this card originally started with a different embossing folder which was just half of the card (to create the bottom panel).  Then I changed my mind but forgot about the sketch.  Just shoot me now!  Both the butterflies and the sentiment were created with silver embossing powder.  Oh how I love silver and white!!!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Silver
Stamps: In a Big Way (Reverse Confetti), Papillon Potpourri
Ink: Versamark
Other: Bitty Butterfly Punch, Elegant Butterfly Punch, Silver Embossing Powder,  Softly Falling Textured Embossing Folder, Dimensionals, Stitched Squares (Lil' Inkers), Dimensionals

We look like children here!!!  Wow!!!  Oh how times have changed!

Thanks so much for stopping in today!  I hope you have a wonderful day!!!

Jen!

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #202

Hello!
I hope you're having a great week!  To my American friends, I hope your kids have enjoyed their first week back at school!  Our school board doesn't start until next Tuesday which is fantastic!  I don't mind having another week without the hectic schedule of school!  The boys aren't complaining either!

We have another new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches this week!  Our incredible hostess is Amy O'Neill!  She creates such beautiful cards!  I love all of the amazing colour combinations she comes up with!

Amy's sketch this week is so versatile.  I love that it can be used for pretty much anything.  I needed to make a birthday card for my dad (his birthday is the day after Jacob's).  I decided I would start with Amy's sketch and see where I ended up.  I used the Double Banner Garland Die and Circle Garland Die along with some fun Stitched Rectangles and Squares.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Basic Black, Silver
Stamps: In a Big Way (Reverse Confetti)
Ink: Black Stazon
Other: Stitched Rectangles (Lil' Inkers), In , Stitched Squares (Lil' Inkers), Double Banner Garland Die (Reverse Confetti), Circle Garland Die (Reverse Confetti), Dimensionals, Silver Bling (not sure where I got this one!).

Thanks again so much for stopping in for a visit.  I hope you'll head on over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog to see all the amazing cards the Design Team has come up with to inspire you!

Have a wonderful week!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #200!

It's here!  It's finally here!  Our 200th Sketch Challenge at Freshly Made Sketches!  Can you believe it?  This has been weeks in the making.  If there is one challenge that you want to take part in, this is it!  Why you ask?  Well, we have some amazing prizes to give away!  I mean totally amazing!  We have found some super generous sponsors who have donated some fabulous prizes!  Lots of these sponsors have joined in our challenge and have created some gorgeous cards that will definitely inspire you!

0ur sketch this week is super versatile and there are so many different things you can do with it!   Don't let it fool you though, it's not always as easy as it looks!!!  Trust me (and the rest of the design team!!!).

I would love to say that the card you see above was the first card I made and that I whipped it up in seconds BUT after last week's post I'm pretty sure you know as well as I do that it isn't!  This is in fact card #7!!!  Yup, #7!  Card 1 turned out not too bad.  I actually don't mind it.  Cards 2-5 did not even get finished and ended up in the garbage.  Card #6 looks like this one only it's more vanilla and brown.  I decided that one just wasn't doing it for me.  Finally I (with help of our fabulous design team) decided on this one!!!!  I'll get on to this creative process one of these days!

This week we will be picking TWO grand prize winners!  

Our two overall winners (two Queens or Kings of Clean) will win one of the following (1 of each prize to be given) from our premier sponsors:

Purple Onion Designs - $50 USD Stamp Prize Package

Stampin' Up! - Watercolor Wings Stamp and Framelit Bundle + 3 Classic Ink Pads of choice ($56 USD value)

Players will be randomly selected to win the following prizes from these fabulous sponsors:

Altenew - $30 Gift Certificate

Avery Elle - $25 Gift Certificate

CAS-ual Fridays Stamps - $25 Gift Certificate + 20% Discount Code for ALL players (FRESH200 through Aug. 30th)

Clearly Besotted - £20 Gift Certificate

Lawn Fawn - Stamp Set of choice

Lil' Inker Designs - $35 Gift Certificate

My Creative Time - €25 Gift Certificate

Neat & Tangled - $25 Gift Certificate

Newton's Nook - $20 Gift Certificate

Paper Sweeties - $25 Gift Certificate

Paper Smooches - $25 Gift Certificate

Reverse Confetti - $25 Gift Certificate

Simon Says Stamp - $25 Gift Certificate

Sugar Pea Designs - $20 GIft Certificate

SRM Stickers - SRM Product

Stamplorations - $15 Gift Certificate OR 3 ARTplorations Stencils

Taylored Expressions - Petite Stamp and Die Combo plus Embossing Folder of Choice

Top Dog Dies - Borders #1 die and Happy Birthday Banner die ($20 value)

Two Paper Divas - $25 Gift Certificate

Uniko - Stamp set

Winnie & Walter - $25 Gift Certificate

As you can see, this is going to be one FABULOUS week!  You don't want to miss out!  You have until Monday, August 24th at noon to get your card entered!  Now, head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out what the Design Team and the Sponsors have created to inspire you!

Have a fabulous week!  Can't wait to see your creations!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #188

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week!  I can't believe that we are already in the last week of May!  Where on earth did May go?!  My oldest turned 9 last week!  I remember the day I went into labour with him like it was yesterday.  Seems unreal that it could be 9 years ago.

Being Wednesday, we have a great new sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our lovely hostess this week is none other than the talented Karren Johnson!  Karren makes such beautiful cards!  I love her creativity!

I put this card together rather quickly but I can't say that I'm thrilled with it.  I wanted to do black, white and gold but I realize now I should have used vanilla instead of white!  I didn't have time to go back and try and change it!  I had to add some butterflies because, well, who doesn't love butterflies!!!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Basic Black, Whisper White
Stamps: In a Big Way (Reverse Confetti), Butterfly Basics
Ink: Versamark
Other: Gold Embossing Powder, Butterfly Thinlits, Bitty Butterfly Punch, Basic Pearls, Stitched Rectangles (Lil' Inkers), Dimensionals


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

Have a great day!

Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #186

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  Can you believe it's Wednesday already?!  Wow!  Where did the week go?  Where is May going?  My oldest son's 9th birthday is fast approaching.  I don't know where the time has gone!

We have had a chilly start to the week here.  We had a lovely weekend and suddenly the winds have blown in some mighty cold air.  I am looking forward to that warm summery weather coming back very soon!

We have a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches this week!  I have the privilege of being this week's hostess.  I always feel so inferior next to the talented group of ladies that I work with!  What an honour to get to create cards with these gals every week!

Yup, that's a circle you see on that sketch!  Can you believe I did that?!  I am trying to cure myself of that aversion to circles!  Actually, truth be told, I knew the sentiment I wanted to use when I came up with the sketch and knew it would fit nicely in a circle - I didn't realize my circle would turn out so big!

Supplies:
Cardstock:  Whisper White, Elegant Eggplant
Stamps: In a Big Way (Reverse Confetti)
Ink: Elegant Eggplant
Other: Big Polka Dot TIEF, Stitched Rectangles (Lil' Inkers), Circle Punch, Edge Dies (Lil' Inkers - honestly I can't remember what they're called!), Basic Rhinestones, Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you have a great week!

Please head over to the Freshly Made Sketches Blog to see the cards the Design Team has created for you!  They are amazing (as always!)!

Have a fabulous day!
Jen

CAS(E) This Sketch Hello!

Hello!
Happy Tuesday!  I don't normally get to post on a Tuesday afternoon!  It's been a very chilly start to the week.  We celebrated Family Day here in Ontario yesterday and were able to go skating together - thankfully indoors!  It was so fun to see the kids skate around and remember that even last year Jake had trouble skating on his own.  This year he whipped around like no one's business!  They are growing far too fast!

I have missed making cards for challenges and had a few minutes this afternoon to make a card.  I can honestly say that cards don't usually come together quickly but I knew when I looked at the sketch from this week's CAS(E) This Sketch challenge exactly what I wanted to make!  This is a very rare occurrence...trust me!

I love butterflies and I think I could put them on every card I make!  I tried making tho scare with sequins (and I do love sequins) but there was just something about it I didn't like.  I decided this one could just be plain.    I like simple...a lot!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Bermuda Bay
Stamps: Papillon Potpourri, In a Big Way (Reverse Confetti),  Dot Spot (PTI)
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Pool Party, Basic Black
Other: Daffodil Delight Blendabilities,  Elegant Butterfly Punch, Dimensionals

Thanks for stopping by today!
I will be back tomorrow with this week's Freshly Made Sketches challenge!

Have a great day!
Jen

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #173

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you're having a great week!  We had a beautiful day here yesterday.  The weather was just gorgeous - well, winter gorgeous!  I love that the ice and snow is melting off the driveway!

Wednesday's mean a great new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!  Our fabulous hostess this week is Kim Singdahlsen from Joyful Creations!  I love the story behind how Kim came up with her blog name!  You should head over to her blog to check it out!

This week's sketch is a bit of an eye teaser!  The sketch looks a bit crooked but the middle two rectangles are the only ones on an angle.  Makes me a bit dizzy!  Super fun to work with though.

Of course I had in mind that this card needed to be for a specific someone and got stumped.  Then (after Narelle reminded me sometimes we need to give up that idea) I decided to just make a card and it all came together quite quickly.  I'm so thankful we have such wise people on our Design Team!

I used my new stitched star dies from My Favorite Things.  I really do love little stars!  They have the faux stitching but I thought they needed a little something else and added the bling!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Basic Black, Whisper White, Real Red
DSP: Perfect Polka Dot
Stamps: In a Big Way (Reverse Confetti)
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Basic Rhinestones,  Anytime Stitched Rectangles, Polka Dot Embossing Folder, Stitched Stars (My Favorite Things), Stitched Rectangles (Lil' Inkers), Dimensionals

Thanks again for stopping by!  I hope you'll head on over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog to see all of the beautiful cards the design team has created!  We then hope you'll join our challenge with your own fabulous creation!

Have a fabulous day!
Jen

Freshly Made Sketches #171

Hello!
Happy Wednesday!  I hope you are having a great week!  We are battling a cold at our house.  So far, just the boys have been down for the count and I would love to leave it that way!  Poor little Jacob is just so tired at night he can barely keep his eyes open!  Thankfully both boys are able to sleep very well at night!

Being Wednesday, we have a great new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches! Our fabulous hostess this week is the talented Rita Wright!  You need to head over to her blog in a bit and check out the beautiful cards she creates - and don't forget that absolute sweetheart of a little girl she has!

Now, this sketch has one GIANT circle on it.  By now, most people know how I feel about circles!  This circle was also too huge to be accommodated by my new Donut die from Reverse Confetti!  I must admit that this one stumped me for a while.  I tried to make a tag to be like Jen Mitchell and then tried some flowers to be like Narelle Farrugia but it just didn't work!

I remembered that I had my Daisy Die from Stampin Up and thought I would put it to work!  I may have tried a pink one instead of a white one but it just didn't look right!  I tried a million combinations of paper before I found one that worked.  Cards sometimes do not come together in 10 minutes like I'd like!   If you ever find that please know, you're not alone!!!!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Whisper White, Basic Black
DSP: Stacked with Love DSP Stack
Stamps: In A Big Way (Reverse Confetti)
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Big Daisy Die, Stitched Rectangle Dies (Lil' Inkers), Vellum, Basic Rhinestones,  Dimensionals

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  Please head over to the Freshly Made Sketches blog and check out the beautiful cards the design team has created!  We can't wait to see what you will come up with this week!

Have a fabulous day!
Jen