INKspirations!

 Hello!  I hope you are enjoying this beautiful weekend weather.   I had so much fun with the CAS sketch this week, I made two!  To join in on the fun, click the link:  (HERE) It’s amazing how changing layers and colors can give such a different look.  Card 1: For the first card, I knew I wanted to use the Love and Joy circle die from - Concord and 9th (retired).  The plaid circles were cut from Stampin Up’s Nature’s Spotlight - Die set.   The gold  from SSS - Etched Berry branch was layered underneath the Love and Joy circle.   Card 2: While the ideas were flowing, I grabbed some older bell dies and the Simon Says Stamp - Holiday Ornaments Set.  The bell pieces were left over, so I simply glued a black piece of cardstock to the back. A black circle was cut and the “Jingle all the way” sentiment was added in Craft White ink.   The stars were also left over cut outs from other bells!  The 3 - circles were framed and matted ...

Hello! Today’s card is inspired from the sketch this week at CAS Colours and Sketches - #583.To join in on the fun, click the link    (HERE)  I started building my sketch with nested circle dies, and a heart punch. The circles used are roughly 1 1/4 inches in diameter.  To add more detail to the circles, I stamped diagonal stripes from Honey Bee Stamps - called Bitty Patterns, in Coastal Cabana Ink (SU).  A red foil heart was punched from an older Stampin Up mini punch, and added to each center. The sentiment is from My Favorite Things - Inside and Out Thank You.  A stamp platform was used for placement, and stamped with Versafine Onyx Black Ink. The finished card is an A2 - side folding card made from Hammermill White #110 cardstock.  Card matte, Red foil cardstock (Recollections) - Michaels. Thanks For Stopping by! - Valerie Kaye

 Hello! The cue for CAS Friday #331 is botanical.  The challenge will run until April 15th.  Join in on the fun,  (Click here) For my card, I chose the  stamps and dies from the Meterrarian Suite from Stampin Up. I cut a piece of card stock to make a top folding card, and then used the clover shaped die to cut the shape of the card.  Hanging the top edge of the die outside the top fold will just give a partial cut. I stamped the oranges in Early Espresso Ink (SU) and colored with a combination of markers and pencils. The oranges were cut and mounted onto the coordinating leaves. The sentiment was stamped in Versa mark Onyx Black Ink, using a stamp platform. Thanks for stopping by! - Valerie Kaye

Hello!  Today I created card for Atlantic Hearts for sketch #675.  If you’d like to join in on the fun, click the link  (HERE) I kept things pretty simple, but used bright colors and high contrast for my design.  This is an A2 side folding card.   I embossed a white piece of Hammermill #110 white cardstock with the Cuttlebug - Twill Stripe embossing folder.  I adhered to the card base and trimmed off the overhanging edges.  For the heart, I cut several 1/4 inch strips of bright colors and used a glue stick on a scrap to lay down the strips.   The heart is the negative piece from Honey Bee - Radiant Heart Dies.   For the sentiment, I used the Hugs word from Unity with Tim Holtz Glossy Black Cardstock. Thanks for stopping by! - Valerie Kaye

 Hello!  This card is for Seize The Birthday’s - Challenge #320.   To join in on the challenge, please click the link  (HERE) The theme is: Clean and Simple using a cutting die.   For my card, I used an older cutting die from My Favorite Things - Dienamics Perfect Fit Balloon Die. I taped the balloon die inside a rectangular mat frame and die cut both at the same time.   I was left with the negative space which I used a sheet of DSP - from Stampin Up (retired).  I used the clean lined birthday sentiment from the A-Muse Stamps Sampler Set 3.   Ink: Versa Fine Onyx Black Ink Paper: Simon Says Stamp Heavy Weight Cardstock 110# Cream 

 Hello!  Today’s card is inspired from the sketch from AAA - Challenges, #308.  To play along, click the link  (HERE) This is an A1 - sized card, measuring   (4 7/8 x 7 inches - score at 3 1/2), made from Recollections Craft cardstock. I stamped the Hero Arts Poppy stamp (CM503) in Versa Fine Onyx Black Ink, on Strathmore mixed media paper. Using an aqua pen, I dabbed the brush directly into the Poppy Parade Ink (SU).  The leaves were painted with Gumball Green ink (SU).   The flowers were die cut, and adhered to the front panel of the card.  The sentiment was heat embossed into a piece of Tim Holtz ideology black metallic cardstock.  I loved the pop of gloss from the cardstock.  The circle die is from (SSS) - Artful Palette set.   Have a great week! Valerie Kaye

Hello!  Today’s card was created for the challenge at CAS on Friday #327 - Anything Goes.   If you’d like to play along click the link  (HERE) For the last couple of days, I have had the idea of using small letter dies on a tag.  The dies are super old, and still missing in action, so I opted to use the lowercase alphabet stamp det from Paper Trey Ink called - Botanical Lowercase. Using a stamp block with a grid, I lined all the letters up and stamped onto a tag using Real Red Ink (SU).  I tied a small bow through the end for a small embellishment. The mouse stamp, is probably my oldest.  It was originally mounted on a wood block, but I use it now as a cling.  I stamped the mouse in Real Red and colored the balloons with markers, and fussy cut.  I liked how he looked perched along the “L and O,” so I glued just the lower half of the body into the tag,   I added a little Wink of Stella for a bit of shimmer to the mouse. The completed card is a...

 Hello!  I finally had a chance to color this adorable little bird.  Well I colored it pink, so baby flamingo maybe?  lol.   This card is for CAS Colours and Sketches #577   (LINK HERE) And  CAS on Friday with the theme of Monotone. (LINK HERE) This is a fantastic sketch because it just requires a few scraps.  I have a few ziploc bags of left over strips and found a light, medium and dark shade for the layout.   The sweet bird is from Unity stamps called “Wee Little Love Courier” -  (Shop Here) This is a side folding card A2 size (4 1/4 x 5 1/2in.) The bird was stamped in Versafine Onyx Black Ink and colored with markers.  Wink of stella was added to make the eyes shimmer.   A stamp platform was used to add the sentiment directly to the card panel.   Have a great weekend!  - Valerie Kaye 

 Hello!  Today’s card is prompted by the challenge to follow the leader.   If you like you play along, please follow the link here:  (AAA #306) This is the Leader’s card, by Francesca Assembly: So to follow Francesca’s card, I looked for two images that were similar in size in shape, and something a little different in the middle.   My Mom gave me this Penny Black stamp set called “Let’s Party” (Transparent) I used a star stencil to apply the background pattern.  I stamped all three images at once using a stamp platform in Early Espresso Brown Ink - (SU).   The bodies were watercolored and fine details were added with fine tip markers, and fussy cut.   The sentiment from Stampin Up’s “It’s Your Day,” was positioned and stamped in Versafine Onyx Black Ink. Thanks for stopping by! - Valerie Kaye

 Hello! Today’s card is Clean and Simple in design, with the prompt being “glass.” To join along with Addicted to CAS’s challenge, please click the link here:  (Addicted to CAS #299)   This is the fun in the creative process.  You can choose anything that is glass or glassy in appearance.   I sifted through my supplies and revisited some of my favorites from A-Muse stamps, to make a masculine Valentines card.   Assembly: This card is a top folding A2 sized card (4 1/4 x 5 1/2in.). I started with a 4 x 5 inch panel used a platform to stamp Altenew’s Geo Frame in the center.   The lightbulb From A-Muse Sampler Pack 3 was centered and stamped in Versafine Onyx Black ink.   A mask was stamped and cut to cover the bulb. Daffodil Delight ink (SU) was lightly blended around the bulb.   The center was colored with a marker, and the card was finished up with simple coloring to add a little shading to the metal base.   Thanks for stopping by! - Va...

 Hello! Tonight’s card was inspired from the color challenge at   CAS Colours and Sketches  #576.   I decided to make a Thank You card that would be simple to make and reproduce.  This card is an A1 size, measuring 4 7/8x 3 1/2 inches.  The stamps and sentiment are from Stampin Up’s Little Delights Set.   I cut 3-small postage stamp die cuts and then stamped the lights.  To space as evenly as possible, I positioned the center die cut first and then added the left and right.  The diecuts were anchored along a leftover strip of Cherry Cobbler card stock.   The sentiment was stamped in Cherry Cobbler (SU) ink.   Thanks for stopping by! - Valerie Kaye

 Hello!  I needed to make a few more cards to mail out.  Every year we add a few more friends to our list!   It’s always nice to have a great sketch to get the ball rolling with a quick, clean lined card. I need to make about 10 to 15 extra cards, so I wanted a pretty simple card layout.  I remembered the great sketch up at Freshly Made Sketches and went back to their blog for a closer look.   This sketch was just exactly what I needed!  I was able to quickly grab a few supplies to make a master copy.  I will then assembly line the others later tonight.   I used a square cutting die to cut the background mat.  I placed in  Tim Holtz - Sizzix Pine branch embosding folder.   Next, I cut a 2 1/4 inch. circle from Stampin Up Poppy Parade paper, and stamped the sentiment from Simon Says Stamp - Holiday Messages Ornament.   The sentiment was positioned on a stamp platform and heat embossed with white embossing powder.   The...

Hi there!  Today’s card is inspired by CAS challenge #293- Keyword: Sweater.  To play along, follow the link here: ( CAS #293 ) To begin, I started with a top folding card base measuring 4 1/4 x 5 1/4.   I stamped Unity’s “…the new nice” stamp set, in alrernating colors of Real Red, and Emerald Envy (Stampin Up).   The sweaters were overlapped, and attached to the card base.  “Warm Wishes” was fussy-cut and added from Concord and 9th’s Stocking Stamp and Stitch Stamp set ( Shop Here ) Small stars were added from the Avery Elle nutcrackers stamp set. Thanks for stopping by! - Valerie Kaye

 Hello!  Tonight’s card was inspired from the current challenge at  CAS and Colour Challenges #570 .   I used a left over goil foil strip, and also a gold dot strip from Stampin Up’s Gold and Silver 6 x 6 Specialty Paper.   I wanted to add some detail to the strips, so I fit both pieces in a rectangular cutting die.  I trimmed the strips by keep in one edge out, and keeping the dashed lines.   I used the snowflake from the Concord and 9th/Kristina Werner Holiday Assortment bundle, and heat embossed with gold.  The snowflake was cut from a stitched circle from Stampin Up’s Holiday Hugs stamp and die set.   The sentiment was positioned on a stamp platform in Versa fine Onyx Black ink and glued to the center. Thanks for stopping by! Valerie Kaye

 Hello! Today’s card was inspired by the current sketch at  CAS On Friday #318 . Using the sketch as a starting point, I cut a piece of Pretty Peacock (Stampin Up) to cut a top folding card base measuring 4 1/4 x 5 1/2. I assembled a the white panel using a 1 inch x 5 1/4 inch strip of Rich Razelberry, and a scrap of Pretty Peacock. and glued into place. I used the trumpet flowers from A-Muse Studio’s Hummingbird set and stamped with Versafine Onyx Black ink. The hummingbird was stamped in the same black ink and colored with a base color of a simple green crayola marker for a base color, then prisma color pencils applied over the top.  This a huge time saver!   I colored the trumpet vine in the same way using an orange marker, and shades of ochre and warm grey to shade.   These are the pencils I used for reference.   Thanks for stopping by! - Valerie Kaye

 Good Morning! Today’s theme with Clean and Simple’s blog, is geometric shapes.   I began with cutting a card base from Accent 120# white cardstock.   I placed the border dot stamp from Amuse Stamps (Sampler Pack 2) onto a stamp positioner and stamped in (SU) Real Red ink.   The deer from Simon Says Stamps ( Dashing Deer Delivery ) was stamped onto white cardstock, cut with a nesting circle die and mounted on a freebie tag from Unity Stamps. Thanks for stopping by! - Valerie Kaye

Hello!  Today’s card was inspired from the sketch from  CAS #568 .   To make this card, I cut a white panel of canson 120# card stock and embossed with SU- brick and mortar embossing folder.   I used a stamp positioner and centered the phrase and the stockings were hung” from (SU) Hung With Care in (SU) Real Red ink.  The sentiment strip was placed in the center and used as a mantle.   The stocking was stamped in Real Red and fussy-cut.  A small red rhinestone was used as a nail head.   Thanks for stopping by! - Valerie Kaye

 Hello!    Today’s card is inspired from  CAS-#567 .   Using this color scheme, I used a top folding card base SU( Pool Party) measuring 4 1/4 x 5 1/2 inches.   I took the diagonal striped paper (Recollections 12x12 paper pad Michael’s) and added the square window frame to cut a window.  Adding the diagonal striped layer created a window for the bunny, with pool party color to fill the negative space. The Bunny and flower came from Spellbinders February 2025 release.  They were colored with an aquapen with (SU- Rococo Rose, Pool Party, and Soft Succulent), and added to the window.   Thanks for stopping by! - Valerie Kaye

 Hello!   Today’s card is inspired by a fun challenge at addicted to CAS  #290 .  Today’s card keyword is “rainbows.”. I chose a stamp from Unity stamp company called: Somethings Wonderful.  I stamped on Daffodil Delight (Stampin Up) cardstock in Versafine Ink.  The stamp was cut with an arch die and mounted onto #120lb. cardstock.  The rainbow frame was cut from a scrap piece of paper.  The Sun comes from Lawn Fawn (Mr. Sun).  He was cut out from Daffodil delight and two black beads were added to the eyes. Thanks for stopping by! Valerie Kaye

Hello!  Today’s card is a Clean And Simple -Christmas card.  This week’s challenge is Squares.  More challenge information here: CAS#289 SQUARES Two or three years ago, I saw a very clean and simple Christmas Card featuring a square used as a frame with a center diecut.  I believe this was a die from Echo Park, but has been discontinued.  After a week of busy creativity, it was nice to declutter the design process and think clean!  🙂  I grabbed a small square die and a scrap of SU-O Night Divine.  I used only the manger sillouette from. PTI-Nativity Die Set.  A slightly larger piece of mirrored gold cardstock (Michael’s-Recollections)- was used to frame the square. The sentiment is from Concord and 9th’s O Night Devine Set.  The bold script stamped beautifully against the Accent 120# white cardstock.   Thanks for stopping by!- Valerie Kaye