A Small Hiatus

With finals coming up extremely quickly (yikes), and boards just a few weeks down the road, crafting (and blogging) is going to have to take a small hiatus temporarily.  While it does manage to keep me somewhat sane, sanity is a luxury I can no longer afford.  Only thing now is study, study, study.

Take 2...

While I already completed one card for the current caardvarks challenge (Trees a Crowd) and for 2S4Y (Laura #24), my mind kept working on how to make my cards look more like I wanted.  This card came to mind, using some of the things that I have picked up from the incredibly encouraging and creative carding community that I unexpectedly found now that I've started blogging.

1.  Add more layers and dimensions to cards.

2.  Use digi-stamps to fill in the gaps in my supplies.

3.  Add embellishments to add some extra pizazz.

These new rules produced this:

Nuts About You

Trees A Crowd & Laura #24

Now in the spirit of challenges, I made this card for the caardvarks Trees A Crowd challenge, as well as the 2 Sketches for You -- Laura's #24.  This is my first sketch suggest card, and I'm still trying to figure out exactly how to use the sketch as a template, but not be so limited as to my interpretation.  So much to learn.

Sadly,  I am desperately feeling a shortage of supplies without the stamps and Sissix that I had in Pittsburgh.  Definitely things to add to my birthday wish list -- besides the whole passing the boards thing.

For the W...

Finishing up her senior film project has the thorn in her side and the albatross on her neck for quite some time, but this week, my sister had to the put in that final push to tie up all loose ends and submit her 15-20 minute movie.  As a little inspiration/ congratulations/ break from the monotony (for her and for me, I guess), I made this little ditty...

To My Director

(front)

(front, detail)

(inside)

[And fabulous news just came in... not only did she like my card, but W was accepted into her undergraduate school's annual student film festival!  Hers will be one of 10-12 movies played this Saturday.  I will of course be going to see her this weekend... and hopefully continuing my studying at full force.]

Pretty in Purple

As promised: another card done by mixing papers of similar color palettes.  I used a beautiful stamp on top of the layers, and then colored them in with Prismacolor colored pencils.

(front)

(inside)

caardvarks - Fantasy Challenge

Jack and the Dream-stalk

This is my first ever caardvarks submission!  While I'm still a novice in card making, I was really excited to finally try my hand at the always inspiring challenges provided by the talented and creative caardvarks!  This challenge was Fantasy.

Despite the Snow...

A long-going tradition is a snow fall on my Spring Break.  I believe the first year I remember this was in 9th grade, and I have yet to be "let down".  However, because of my later-than-ever Spring Break this year (the first full week of April), I thought that this trend would die.  However, on Tuesday, only 5 days into my break, I awoke in Pittsburgh to find snow on the ground.  And it wasn't even a light dusting, there were clumps and the roads were equally nasty.

Long story short (too late), inspiration for the following card.

Snow, Seriously!?

Lots of Dots

This card was inspired by the little circular image with the hummingbird that is actually a Post-It note that I found at Michaels.  I am still very limited in my ability to break away from straight lines and quadrilateral layouts, so this was my attempt to do something non-linear (however, notice the background).  I enjoyed mixing and matching papers with the complimentary colors and patterns, and I think that you'll be seeing similar ideas for my next cards.

Dotty Hummingbird

Paper and Thread?

This card was inspired by the ability to SEW on paper to produce really unique cards.  Momma S showed me her versions of the beautiful cards inspired by a Paper Crafts magazine -- I had an idea for this card (being my punny self).  The simple stitch adds another dimension to the card, and made it more whimsical.

 All Stitched Up?

A Million Thanks

You can never have enough thank you cards, and with the little "Thank You" embossing kit from CCB, these cards came together very quickly!

Little Half-Cards

A Tickled Pink Thank You

Gone Fishing...

The second I saw the Finding Nemo die-cut, I knew that I would have a grand ole time carding it up!  Being one of my absolute favorite movies (not just animated, favorite among ALL movies), I knew that I could be pun-ny, funny and poignant with this little duuuude (said in that adorable little surfer turtle's voice).  Nemo is appropriate for all occasions!

Inspiration & Hope:

Missing You:

Saying Hello:

(front)

(inside)

Spring Break = Craft Fest

It's been quite some time since my posting extravaganza... and in the meantime I did some serious crafting, specifically making cards.  Momma S showed me the wonders of her Sizzix machine, and boy did I get inspired!  I promised cards will be posted when I have time to do a proper photo shoot.

A Penguin Reunion

Now my sister is sucked into the world of amigurumi.  W just learned to crochet on Thursday night, and is already making her own creations from start to finish.  She made a penguin just as I have, and the two of them engaged in the photo shoot, below.

You Can Call Me Octopus... Octopus!

My newest creation... in just a little over a day I made this little guy.  I wanted to use this beautiful shade of blue for some project, and the octopus just seemed fitting.  My husband, D, is requesting a 'Nanerpus (as in from those really funny Denny's breakfast commercials), and while I think that my main skill is to follow other people's directions, maybe just a little yellow yarn and some creative adjustments could make his dreams come true.

Side note: this pattern comes from the adorable Amigurumi World: Seriously Cute Crochet by Ana Paula Rimoli.  It's really a great collection, with a "How To" beginning and a wide variety of seriously cute patterns.

Pingy the Penguin

One of my absolute favorite projects -- and it just took an evening!  I had all of the colors ready to go, and again used a pattern from Lions Brand Yarn/Michaels.  This little guy is just a two-colored sphere, with the added extras of the eyes, wings and feet.  My newly purchased craft/safety eyes (courtesy of Joann Fabrics) made my life a lot easier, and produced a better end product.  I replaced the eyes in my previous projects, and I thought they look significantly cuter for it.  My next project is already underway... soon I will have a whole zoo.

It's Totoro!

The second that I saw this pattern (http://heavens-hellcat.livejournal.com/420.html -- THANK YOU!), I immediately thought that I would have to make it for my sister.  We loved this movie as younger children; this seemed the perfect gift for W, as a Japanese aficionado (having learned the language and lived there for a semester).  While I would not quite consider this normal amigurumi size (being about 14 inches tall), and consuming quite a bit of yarn, it was one of my most favorite projects so far, and it definitely received the biggest reaction from W and my family.  A really fun project (and it only took about 3 days)!

The Only Puppy We're Allowed to Have

This little dachshund was made for my sister, W, who one her list of dogs that she wants (just as I have one) is a dachshund.  My aunt had one that was named Cookie, and while this little guy looks nothing like her, it does look somewhat like the pattern from Lion Brand Yarn that I used (available for free from Michaels or from their website directly).  In addition, I made a little collar for him from red yarn, and added a little piece of metal jewelry that looked like a dog tag (it said "Hope).  I thought that it would make him just that much more special.  W really liked him... but another gift seemed to overshadow his cuteness (see next post).

Not for Eating...

My very first amigurumi... as promised.  Friday after exams, all I wanted to do was begin crocheting these adorable little Japanese-inspired animals.  This first cupcake was my learning trial, courtesy of Nimoe's blog (http://nimoe.wordpress.com/2007/12/16/amigurumi-cupcake-tutorial/).  While it doesn't quite look as good as her work, it was my first and I learned all about the techniques necessary.  My animals have definitely improved in quality since this; I have definitely caught the bug.