Altenew April 2025 Inspiration Challenge

Hi, friends!  I’m sharing my entry for the Altenew April 2025 Inspiration Challenge: Pretty in Pink Cards (click to go to Altenew blog post.)This month’s challenge is hosted by Amy Rysavy and the goal was to create a card inspired by this photo:

I was debating which product to use to create my challenge entry when a surprise came in the mail - the Charming Bouquet Outline Stamp Set, which was a gift from Altenew for their 11th Anniversary.  Decision made!  What better way to thank Altenew for this wonderdul gift than by using it for my entry.

I got work on my design.  It started with an A2 kraft card base.  I then cut a card panel to 4”x5.25” and created a background panel with Altenew Frosty Pink and Frayed Leaf Ink Sprays and a baby wipe.  I sprayed the ink onto my glass craft surface, picked it up onto the baby wipe, and pressed it down to the card panel.  I did one diagonal side of the panel with the Frosty Pink and the other with Frayed Leaf.  I put the panel aside to dry.  Once dry, I ran Altenew Milk Chocolate Crisp Dye Ink around the sides and adhered it to the card base with double sides tape.

I next decided how to stamp the image. I wanted a panel with the image stamped in the center and part of the image both above and below it going off of the panel.  I stamped it with Altenew Milk Chocolate Crisp Dye Ink.

It was time to color!  I only wanted the full center image colored and to keep the partial images just brown and white.  I started by coloring the leaves using the Altenew Green Valley Artist Markers.  Shadow Creek was put down onto the leaves, followed by Grass Field and then then Firefly.  Once done, I went over each leaf with Citrus Burst to glaze it and bring out the color.

I then moved onto the flowers.  I used Puffy Heart and Rose Quartz on one and Coral Berry, Frosty Pink, and Pink Cloud on the other two.  Once done, I went over these two flowers with Rose Quartz to glaze them, and used Fresh Lemon and Citrus Burst to color the centers.

With the coloring complete, I used a Nuvo Glitter Gloss Aqua Shimmer Pen to add some sparkle to the flowers, stamped the sentiment in Milk Chocolate Crisp Dye Ink, and added three Altenew Crystal gems.  Milk Chocolate ink was run around the edges of the panel and it was adhered down to the card using double sided foam tape.  The final step was to run the Milk Chocolate ink around the card base.

I’m truly happy with how the design turned out!  I can see each of the elements from Amy’s photo and live how these  colors all came together.  I hope that you agree!

Thanks for spending some time here with me today.  Until next time . . . be well!

Yuletide Dreams - December 2024 Gecko Galz Projects

Happy Holidays, friends!

Am I the only one who can't believe that Christmas is a mere five days away?  This month seems to have flown by; lucky for me, my gifts are purchased and I only have a few more to make.  Speaking of makes, today I'm showcasing my second tag for the Gecko Galz 25 Tags of Christmas as well as my design team projects.  The theme this month was Yuletide Dreams, and I've created some fun cards that will take you on a trip through Christmases of years ago.

 First up is my second tag of the month.  I adore art that features winter scenes with a horse-drawn sleigh and so I knew that I wanted to feature this beautiful image as soon as I saw it.  I wrinkled up some brown shipping paper and glued it down to a tag.  Ink blending with some browns adds age to it, and it takes on such a vintage appearance.  I then created a wreath from burlap ribbon by wrapping the ribbon around a chipboard circle with the center removed.  I glued the image to the back of it and then adhered it to the tag.  I added light touches of brown ink shades onto the wreath before gluing down the berries, branches, and flower.  A quick ribbon of red & green plaid was glued down to the top along with another flower, and I created a sentiment with my label maker.  I really love how it turned out!

My first card is a throwback to the the mid-century modern design of the 1950's and early 1960's.  Filled with teals and pinks and silver garland, it's a celebration of Christmas during a time that was changing from traditional to modern.  It is constructed of a shadow box frame on the front of a card to give it depth, and I used some acrylic magic string to allow for the appearance of floating sentiments.  How cute is it?!?!

My next few cards are a throwback to times earlier than the first.  All are fun and festive and include layers to give dimension.  Each of the images really spoke to me, especially on the last card, a waterfall card, in which I used several images.  They're all so nostaglic!

I hope that you enjoy each of these projects, and wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas.  Until next time . . . be well!

December 7th Tag for the Gecko Galz 25 Tags of Christmas

Happy December, friends!

Thanks for stopping by Paper Play to see what's new.  It's hard to believe that Christmas is less than three weeks away.  I've been busy crafting design team monthly projects, gifts for friends and family, and Christmas cards.  Speaking of which . . . today I'm sharing one of my creations for the Gecko Galz design team.

This one of two tags that I created for our 25 Tags of Christmas event on the Gecko Galz blog.  My Twinkling Lights tag feautures the image if an adorable young girl posed in front of Santa’s list.  She’s surrounded by green garland and sparkling lights.  It’s a fun tag full of Christmas whimsy.

I hope that you enjoy it!  Until next time . . . be well!

Happy Holidays - Tuesday Morning Sketches

Hi, friends!

Christmas crafting is in full blown mode.  Just about everything that I’m working on lately has to do with the holiday season.  The sketch for this week also worked very well for a Christmas card.  I used paper and ephemera from Simple Stories to create this it.  It has a bit of a retro feel to it.  It’s such a fun design!

Thanks for stopping by Paper Play.  Until next time . . . be well!

Magical Christmas Designs - Gecko Galz November 2024 Challenge

Welcome back to Paper Play, friends!

The fun part about this time of the year is that we celebrate so many holidays.  This month we've moved on from all things dark and beautiful to the magic of Christmas!  November's Gecko Galz Challenge theme was Magical Christmas designs.  This was a fun twist on the typical Christmas crafts since the word magical may be interpreted so many different ways.  I decided to focus on the magical beings of the season - elves, beings of nature, and angels.

I created four projects for the challenge - a tag and three greeting cards.  For the cards, I went with a theme of using a line from a Christmas song as the greeting.  I think that I found the perfect images to accommodate them!

For the tag, I used a chipboard tag as the base so that it would be very sturdy.  I painted the tag, glued down the elf image, and then stenciled holly and ivy with colored grit paste.  I made the burlap wreath by cutting a chipboard circle with the center cut out and wrapping the burlap around it.  The burlap is glued down to the circle.  I added some vintage grunge to the wreath using Tim Holtz Distress Spray Stains, and then glued it down to the tag so that the elf image was in the center.  I glued down the sentiment strip and some additional floral elements and the tag was finished.

 

 

 

The first card design came to me as soon as I saw the image of the Green Man/Forrest Man.  I immediately thought, "Let heaven and nature sing."  Seeing as though he is a being of nature, I thought it appropriate that he be surrounded by nature.  I grabbed a wreath die and cut the wreath elements out of a darker green cardstock.  I lightly added some Tim Holtz Vintage Photo Distress Ink to darken it up a bit, and then spritzed them with some Tim Holtz Distress Spritz to get some shiny mica on there.  I glued the wreath down to the image so that it was in the center and then added poinsettias and acrylic bubbles.  I wanted a somewhat plain background so that it didn't take away from the beauty of the wreath and image.  To start, I cut a piece of brown packing paper down to 4"x5.25" and wrinkled it up into a ball.  This technique creates a beautiful dark background that looks vintage and has little veins running all over it when you adhere it down.  I opened it up and adhered it down to a cardstock base (A2).  I ink blended some Tim Holtz Walnut Stain Distress Ink over it to add more aging to it, and then ran a gold metallic marker around the edges of the card base.  I glued the wreath down to the card base and created the sentiment with a label maker.

 

 

 

 

 

I loved this beautiful image as soon as I saw it, and the sentiment "Sleep in Heavenly Peace" immediately came to mind.  I thought of this cute little angel and the fox sleeping by the moon.  I wanted a very metallic aesthetic for this card to offset the softness of the image and help accentuate a winter feel.  The card panel was created by ink blending some blue, green, and purple inks onto white cardstock.  I then spritzed it with some Distress Sprtiz colors.  Once dry, I ran some Walnut Stain Distress ink around the edges.  I created the moon by die cutting a circle from black cardstock and then cutting it into a crescent shape.  I rubbed it with some silver gilding wax and then with some Distress Spritz on a rag and let it dry.  I fussy cut the image and glued it to the backside of the moon, and then adhered the moon to the card base using double sided foam tape.  I created the sentiment with a label maker and adhered it to the card, and then glued down some crystals to act as stars in the sky.

 

 

 

 

 

There were three other angel images that I wanted to use.  I thought of a collage but couldn't find quite the right arrangement.  I then remembered this photo strip frame die that I have from Whimsy Stamps and knew it would be perfect.  I created a slimline card base with Kraft cardstock.  I die cut the frame from Kraft cardstock, blended Tea Dye and Vintage Photo Tim Holtz Distress Inks over it, and then spritzed it with some Distress Spritz.  I ink blended some Tea Dye ink over each of the images and adhered them to the dried frame with double sided foam tape strips.  I then glued the frame down to the card base.  I thought about a sentiment related to angels and these beautiful images brought to mind, "Angels we have heard on high."  I created it with a label maker and adhered it to the card.

 

 

 

 

I really love these non-traditional Christmas cards and hope that you do, too!  Thanks for spending some time with me on the blog today.  Until next time . . . be well!

Winter Wishes - Tuesday Morning Sketches

Hello, friends!

This week’s sketch for Tuesday Morning Sketches was a beautiful floral arrangement inside of an arch.  I was immediately drawn to a winter theme with blue and white flowers.  I used a Sizzix snowflake embossing folder on a piece of brushed silver cardstock that had the arch cut from it.  I added some vintage grunge to it with black ink.  The card panel behind it was created by applying Simon Hurley Midnight Snack ink to white cardstock with a baby wipe.  Don’t you love the marbled look of it?  A white and a blue Little Birdie flower were glued down inside of the arch and the winter wishes sentiment was added to finish it.  So frosty and beautiful!

Here are my card and the sketch:

Thanks for stopping by Paper Play today.  Until next time . . . be well!

Seeds of the Past - Tuesday Morning Sketches

Happy Tuesday, friends!

Today’s share for Tuesday Morning Sketches is a beautiful encouragement card that is is full of Autumnal colors.  It’s a beautiful way to remind someone that each experience brings us forward to a new one.  The floral paper and sentiment are both from Brutus Monroe.

Here is my card and the sketch it’s based on:

Thanks for spending some time here with me today.  Until next time . . . be well!

Holiday Wishes with Tuesday Morning Sketches

Hello, friends!

It’s Tuesday, which means that it’s time for this week’s Tuesday Morning Sketches share.  My mind automatically turned to Christmas when I saw this week’s sketch.  It reminded me of a candy cane and so I ran with that inspiration.  White and red with metallic green stripes.  An easy, yet fun, way to say Happy Holidays!

Here’s my card and the sketch:

Thanks for stopping by my blog today.  Until next time . . . Be well!

Dia de Los Muertos

Hello, crafty friends!

Today’s post celebrates Dia de Los Muertos - the Day of the Dead.  A day that celerates and memorializes family and friends who have passed and is widely celebrated in Mexico.  My card features the beautiful Day of the Dead Sacred Heart Sugar Skull from Blank Page Muse.

Here’s what I used to make it:

Day of the Dead Sacred Heart Sugar Skull

Brutus Monroe Clear Embossing Ink

Brutus Monroe Gilded Embossing Powder

Black A2 card base

Cream 4”x5.25” card panel

Black 3.75”x5” card panel

Scraps of Gold Metallic cardstock

Grabie Acrylic Markers

Tim Holtz Distress Ink - Tea Dye

Delicata Golden Glitz Metallic Pigment Ink

Brutus Monroe Tea Stain Spray

Prima Marketing Paper Flowers

Here’s how I made it:

Adhered cream card panel to black card base and blended Tea Dye ink around the edges.

 

Stamped sugar skull onto black card panel with clear embossing ink and then heat set gilded embossing powder.

Colored the skull with acrylic markers.

Spritzed the colored image with Tea Stain spray.

Dabbed the card panel with gold metallic pigment ink using a baby wipe.

Adhered card panel to card base.

Brushed paper flowers with Tea Dye ink and glued them to card.

Created sentiment with label maker, glued to gold metallic cardstock scraps, and cut them into strips.  Glued the strips to the card.

Here’s a closeup of the card:

Thanks for stopping by Paper Play to read about this project.  Until next time . . . be well!

Hop along with us by clicking here to view the other blogs!

https://blog.blankpagemuse.com/2024/10/halloween-and-day-of-dead-celebration.html

Enjoy the Little Things - Tuesday Morning Sketches

Hello, friends!

Today’s card for Tuesday Morning Sketches was inspired by the colors of some leaves that I saw on a walk the other day.  They were the most vibrant leaves that I have seen this season.  With this in mind, I decided to use the beautiful new Autumn Tweed paper from Brutus Monroe as part of the design.  The three upside down arches seemed like the logical use for it.  Add in some word patterned paper and a sentiment and the card was complete.  Here’s my card and the sketch it’s based on:

Thanks for spending some time with me here today!  U til next time . . . be well!

Gecko Galz Annual Blog Hop

Hello Everyone!

We want to welcome everyone to the Gecko Galz 14th Annual Blog Hop.

 This is our Tricks and Treats Blog Hop! 

We have 14 AMAZING blogs for you to visit this weekend, each with some gorgeous projects created using the Gecko Galz collage sheets that we are giving you for FREE on each site! Each blog you visit will have a exclusive free Gecko Galz Collage sheet for you to download, the one here is

GOTHIC LOVE

(Click Right on the image below to save)

Here are the projects that I created with my collage sheet:

 

 

  

 

 

  

   

Also make sure you leave a message on each blog site you visit, and follow that design team member if you do not already and on the last blog there will be a phrase that you will email to us to be entered in our drawing for a wonderful treat pack.  So sit back, relax, take your time and enjoy the hop!

We have FIVE amazing prizes up for grabs:

        First is a Gecko Galz Kit Club for 2025!

        Second prize is a subscription to the Gecko Galz 2025 Card Topper Kits!

       Third prize is a subscription to the 2025 Tin Topper Kits for 2025!

Fourth prize is a $25 shopping Spree!

       And our Grand Prize ONE FULL YEAR of Gecko Galz PRODUCTS!!! This includes the 6 new collage sheets each quarter, a new stamp set each quarter, a new Craft Kit each quarter, a ATC collections, 1 Paper Pack each quarter, one jewel it collection, Tin Toppers, and Card Toppers!

 First of all, you will need to visit all 14 blogs and leave a comment on each blog :) **This is important so we know you have been to all the blogs **. Collect the phrase at the end of the hop on the Fripperies and Butterflies site there will be a link to email the phrase to Gecko Galz at geckogalz2019@gmail.com.

This enters you in the give Away. On October 28th we will randomly draw the 4 winners and email each of you, then we will post the winning names  in our Newsletter on November 1st.

 For an extra chance to win make a purchase from the GECKO GALZ ETSY STORE between the 25th of October and the 27th of October and your name goes in again for a better chance of winning (each purchase you make that weekend gives you another chance to win) 

 Now have fun visiting each Blog!

Gecko Galz

Kim Rayko

Robin Francini

Julia Vasquez

Tanis Buckton

Susan Renshaw

Kelly Parker 

Suzanne Franin

Carole Jones

Mia

Gerri Herbst

Jessica Kaiser

Walter Zemrock

Leanne Seed