Not Too Shabby

I really love the shabby, vintage look, but find it quite challenging to execute in a clean and simple style.  So I have been playing.

Here are a few cards I made with my new Elizabeth stamp.  They are a wee bit vintage (only because of the style of the stamp), but not very shabby.  I wanted to make something more shabby, so today, I just started stamping.  I rarely start a card without having an idea of what the finished card will look like, but not this time.  I just let loose.  (That is downright scary for an AR/OCD perfectionist!)

And look what I made...

White cardstock - not the best choice for vintage/shabby-chic.  But then that's what happens when you just start stamping.  This card isn't too bad, but I knew I could do better.  (If I were to make this same card over again, I wouldn't leave as much space between the images on the lower part of the card.  All that white bugs me.)

And I did do better.

Vintage.  Shabby-chic. CAS.  *Shriek*  The more I look at this card, the more I love it.  I may never give it away.

Supplies:
Stamps - Bliss, Very Vintage jumbo wheel, Elizabeth, Happy Harmony
Paper - Baja Breeze, GKD PL white and ivory
Ink - Crumb Cake, Baja Breeze
Accessories - lace ribbon, half pearls, dimensionals

If you are trying to go for a certain look, don't give up if it doesn't come right away.  Keep playing, because you never know what will happen, and you just may learn something in the process.  (I learned not to use white for vintage cards - duh!)  Too many times I get caught up in the end result and forget to enjoy the process of getting there.  Some of the best opportunities for creativity present themselves in 'mistakes', so embrace the journey!

K

PTI Tag & Frame Challenge

Have you been checking out the sneak peeks at PTI?  As always, I want almost everything they are releasing, but I must maintain some restraint.  I have never participated in one of their sneak peek challenges until now.  I just had to stamp something today.

The challenge is to make a tag that incorporates a frame of some kind.  Since Valentine's Day is right around the corner, I made a love themed tag.

This is about as far from CAS as I can get without it looking like my Kindergarten daughter made it.  Something about a small canvas made it much more doable, and I'm really pleased with the shabby vintage look I was able to achieve.

Supplies:
Stamps - Polka Dot Punches, Tiny Tags, French Script background
Paper - Crumb Cake, Real Red, GKD PL ivory
Ink - Crumb Cake, Real Red, Versamark
Accessories - Nestabilities deckled rectangle die, Big Shot, Copper EP, heat tool, dauber, Full Heart, Jewelry Tag, and slot punches, mini scallop decorative scissors, lace trim, baker's twine, half pearls, ribbon

Whew!  That took a lot of stuff, but it was worth it.

Now lets just hope I win the drawing so I don't have to buy it all!

K

Vintage Santa

As soon as I saw this set in the Holiday Mini, I knew I had to have it.  This Santa reminds me of a mug my Mom has had forever that always decorates the mantle at Christmas.  I have seen newer mugs in the same style, but they're just not the same.

Since the Santa reminded me of my Mom's vintage mug, I wanted to make a vintage style card.  There is only one problem; vintage and CAS aren't very compatible.  I gave it a try anyway.

Not too bad.  This definitely has a vintage edge to it, but it's still pretty CAS.  It's almost as close as it can get without stepping out of bounds.

The Ho!Ho!Ho! was made by masking off the "Hol" from the Happy Holidays stamp and stamping it three times.  The dot on the exclamation point is the dot from the "i" of the same stamp.  How creative of me!

Supplies used:
Stamps - Jolly Old Saint Nick, Jolly Bingo Bits, Season's Greetings
Paper - naturals ivory, cherry cobbler, kraft
Ink - Memento rich cocoa, cherry cobbler, espresso
Accessories - cherry cobbler, blush blossom, and pretty in pink reinkers, aquapainter, white gelly roll pen, blue marker, 2-way glue pen, white flock, dauber, edge distresser tool, lace, dimensionals

I'm pretty sure I won't use the other 2 images in this set (I think they're kind of ugly), but I'm glad I have this Santa.  Have you ever bought a whole set for just one stamp?  Do tell.

Have a great weekend!

K