Today’s post is about the As You See It Challenge:
Its a speed challenge, which means you have to complete it in 10 minutes or less. These challenges can be stressful, but also very freeing and pretty much ALWAYS get your creative mojo pumping. I think they are definitely my favourite challenges to do. I almost always am not perfectly happy with my final result, but I often do a spin-off card after the speed run. These push me to think fast and fuss less.
For your entertainment, I recorded my process of creating my challenge card.
You can watch the short video here:
I actually am quite happy with this cute and simple design. I used the Foxy Friends stamp set with Pumpkin Pie ink. The cardstock colours include Whisper White, Cajun Craze, and Pumpkin Pie. The wood patterned paper is from the Wood Textures Designer Series Paper Stack. The thanks stamp is from the Thankful Thoughts stamp set.
Here’s my finished product:
The little heart embellishment is from the Brights Enamel Shapes pack. You can see my usual little swirl of twine (Linen Thread, in this case) to add a little bit of fun.
Part of the chaos of speed stamping means smudged ink sometimes and there it is for all to see right beside my “thanks”. That’s what happens ahen you stamp after attaching the cardstock with Stampin’ Dimensionals!
I encourage you to try speed stamping. Its a little crazy, but really ramps up your creativity!
My card design today is pretty simple and is a CASE of another card I saw on Pinterest. You can see it by clicking here. I really liked the vibrant stripes on the crisp white background and decided to use that for this week’s challenge.
The bird posed a bit of a problem for me as I only had two bird images – no, three! Three bird images to choose from. I tried to work with my flamingo, but it just wasn’t happening for me. The stork carrying the baby just wasn’t inspiring me, so I went with the rooster from the Wood Words Stamp Set. I guess birds just aren’t my thing. I really wished I had the new Cheery Chirps stamp set from the 2017 Holiday Catalogue. They look so sweet.My card is simple.
I adhered the strips of paper (Tempting Turquoise, Night of Navy, Bermuda Bay, Pacific Point, Tempting Turqoise, and Night of Navy again) to the 4″x5-1/4″ piece of Whisper White cardstock using Fast Fuse mostly, but added the narrow strip on the right with a thin dotted line of Mutipurpose Liquid Glue just so I would have more control of where the adhesive was going (to avoid any sticky exposures). If you look closely, you can see some score lines that I added on either side of the stripes. They just bring a little more interest and texture. This completed card front was adhered to the Night of Navy card base with Stampin’ Up Dimensionals.
The rooster image (bird is the word) was stamped using Cherry Cobbler ink on Whisper White cardstock. The sentiment stamped over top with Basic Black Archival ink. These images were die cut using a circle die from the Stitched Shapes framelits.
The swirl of Linen Thread was added to the back of the circle with a piece of Tear and Tape, then the circle was mounted on the front of the card with Stampin’ Dimensionals.
Finally, my “brad” is actually an adhesive-backed Bermuda Bay circle from the Brights Enamel Shapes pack from Stampin’ Up!
And that’s all I’m going to say about that. My contact lenses are feeling sticky in my eyes. Time to take them out and go to bed.
BAAAHHHHH! IT’S SEPTEMBER!! Where did the summer go!?
I am sad that the warm days are coming to an end, but I admit that I love the fall. It is my most favourite season of the year. There’s just one thing that is a little bit annoying …. everything is pumpkin spice! Pumpkin spice lotion (no real surprise here), pumpkin spice oolong tea (yup, I can go with that), pumpkin spice Oreo cookies (okay… ), Instant Oatmeal (I’d probably give that a try), Hershey’s Kisses (um… I’ll pass), Pumpkin Spice Peeps (no thank you), pumpkin spice Cheerios (definitely not!), Pumpkin Spice Popcorn (it’s Boomchickapop popcorn, so it’s probably really good, actually!), and even Pumpkin Spice Pringles potato chips (yikes!)! It doesn’t really stop there, but I won’t go on. You can also find spoof photos for Pumpkin Spice cigarettes, rifle cartridges, mouth wash, feminine hygiene products, contraceptives, and weed killer!
I’m pretty sure it all started with Starbucks and their Pumpkin Spice Latte that is adored and sought after by so many of you latte junkies out there. I’m actually not a fan of having cinnamon or nutmeg in my lattes. If I choose flavouring at all, I order the cascara latte (my fave when it’s available) or the toffee nut latte.
As far as pumpkin spice goes – bring on the pumpkin pie!! That’s all I need.
… and maybe a scented candle.
… and those Boomchickapop popcorn (if you can get your hands on some, send them my way!)
Okay, enough about all things pumpkin spice! Here’s the As You See It Sketch Challenge.
I love my coffee stamps. This card uses the Merry Cafe stamp set and the Coffee Cafe stamp set with the Coffee Cups Framelits dies.
You can see the beautiful Cable Knit embossing folder in Soft Sky cardstock on the card base. I love the large gingham/plaid patterned paper from the Merry Little Christmas Designer Series Paper Stack! I used patterned paper from the Color Theory paper stack for the coffee cup and the lid. The sleeve for the coffee cup is stamped on a piece of patterned paper from the Coffee Break designer series paper.
A little bit of sponging with Crushed Curry ink on the base of the coffee cup and on the edge of the lid adds some depth to the colours. Linen Thread is the perfect fall touch to wrap behind the coffee cup over the Old Olive and Basic Black layers. The Pear Pizzazz Enamel Shapes are just a fun pop of playfulness. And I love the stitched edge on the Basic Black circle that was die cut using the Big Shot and the Stitched Shapes Framelits. The stitching marks make a boring black circle much more interesting, don’t you think?
Stampin’ Up Dimensionals really make things pop on a card. Flat cards are a rare thing for me. I love my Dimensionals, particularly the new Mini Dimensionals that Stampin’ Up put out. The smaller size allows for much more functionality and for a longer lasting package (without cutting them in half!!)
If you like doing sketch challenges, make sure you try this sketch and share it with us at the As You See It Challenge blog. We love seeing what you’ve created. So be sure to post a picture of your creation on a public social media site and link it to the As You See It blog!
Happy Stamping!
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