How CUUUUUTE is This?!

I'm always looking for a good excuse to break out my favorite Lawn Fawn stuff, and since I had not yet used my Car Critters without the Christmas add-on, the "How CUTE Is This?" challenge, the latest in our Creation Inspiration Weekend on the Paper Anthology Facebook Page seemed like a good time to remedy that.

Those Car Critters really are the cuuuuutest thing on four wheels and it turns out I love coloring the bears who come in the original release as much as their reindeer cousins. My card is a slimline design, because that was the shape of my ancient diagonal blue plaid paper scrap, which I decided was perfect for the sky. The trees and clouds are cut from other ancient paper scraps. The stickers --and the awesome flowery road!-- are from Doodlebug.

Text Me!

It's the last day of February, as well as the last day of our Creation Inspiration Weekend on the Paper Anthology Facebook page. My final challenge is called "Text Me" and (have you guessed already?) I'd like to see create a card that prominently celebrates... text! That might mean a background made of texty patterned paper, doing some hand-lettering, using oversized alphabet stickers or stamps, or just creating a card where the sentiment is the star. 

My card features not one, not two, but THREE texty patterened papers, as well as some older, chunky alphabet stickers. Penny Black's Exquisite Envelope Stamps set the scene perfectly, with the nod to snail mail as well as the vivid pop of the fun-to-color blooms. 

Stencil Stunners...

...is the name of the next Creation Inspiration challenge on the Paper Anthology Facebook Page and it's hosted by Elisabeth. I broke out some of my (many!) foliage stencils so I could play along:

Most of my stamps are stored by category, so when I was getting Mythical Grumplings from the Animals and Creatures drawer the other day, I spotted my Dina Wakley Scribbly Birds and thought (as I always do!) that it would be fun to make a card with them. So I did. It's very simple... just leaf stencils, layered in various green Distress Oxides, a Scribbly Bird colored with regular DI's and cut out, plus the sentiment from that same Dina set. All you really need, imo! ♥

Keeping You in Stitches

We're on day two of Creation Inspiration Weekend, and everyone is invited to join us for challenges galore on the Paper Anthology Facebook Page. Next up is "A Stitch in Time" which, as you may have guessed, involves one of my favorite go-to techniques: STITCHING! It can be hand-stitching, machine stitching, or even faux-stitching; although in this situation, stitched dies do not count. Otherwise, use a little or a lot, decorative or practical, plain or fancy, but get ready... and get thready!

I've added quite a bit of machine stitching (around the clouds and the edge of the panel) plus a little bit of zig zag hand stitching on the righthand side of the heart. But the stars of the show are Taylored Expressions' Mythical Grumplings, whom I've stamped, colored and fussycut in all their grouchy glory.

Tons of Tape

This weekend (Feb 26-28) we are celebrating Paper Anthology's Creation Inspiration Weekend on the PA Facebook Page. There will be *TEN* different creative challenges, as well as chats, trivia and more. I'm the hostess for Challenge #2: Washi Wonderland; for which... (you may already have guessed, lol) ...we'd like to see cards and layouts that feature decorative tape. It just so happens I have one or two rolls laying around:

I've used nineteen (19!) tapes on this card, which, on the one hand, is quite a lot of tape; but on the other hand, is a mere fraction of my collection. (I'm never sure if I should be proud or embarrassed about a statement like that?) Your project obviously does not have to feature so many tapes, nor does your background have to be entirely made of rainbow shades, but... if you have LOTS of tape and would like to use a bit, this is a good way to go! :)