Serene Watercolor

      I love to watercolor!  It is a very relaxing medium for me…although, I’m not very good at it.  So, I try to keep it simple.  This card is certainly an easy one and, literally, takes about 5 minutes to complete.  The most difficult part was making the decision as to which sentiment I wanted to place on it. 

     This is what is known as a watercolor wash.  You simply wet down your watercolor paper with a spray bottle.  Dip an aqua painter or watercolor brush in a puddle of ink.  I used Classic re-inkers in Marina Mist and Lucky Limeade to make my puddle.  Swipe the color across your paper and let it bleed and run…move it around with your brush…get the desired effect you are wanting.  Really, this was a reckless, swipe it on and be done with it kind of thought process.  Just Do It!!  Let it dry completely or hit it with the heat tool (which I did because it would have taken longer than 5 minutes if I didn’t).  The flowers, from Serene Silhouettes, were stamped in StazOn Jet Black.  I layered my image panel onto Basic Black and Lucky Limeade.  The DSP is a torn piece of First Edition Specialty paper (I’m really liking it).  The….I really don’t know what to call these….the black pieces on the opposite corners?  Anyway, they are punched using the Modern Label Punch and a silver mini brad secures them on the card.  The card base is Very Vanilla. 

     See?  Easy peasy!  Yet it looks like you would put a lot of time into it.  I’ll never tell :)  Thanks for stopping by.  I’m glad you did.  I hope you’ve been inspired to give this watercolor wash technique a try.  I promise…you don’t have to stay in the lines :)

Hugs,

Leslee

Supplies may be purchased here.

Watercolor Dry Embossing

     I bet you thought I fell off the face of the earth, didn’t you?  Well, I’m fine.  I took a week off and spent it with the boys :)  (much needed).  Then, it took me a week to catch up on paperwork between one company or another.  I have been very crafty and have a ton to show you too.  Now, if I can just find the time to photograph and upload…hmmm.  PTA has started once again.  Back 2 School Staff Luncheon, Meet-N-Greet with the teachers, Open House…it’s going to be a busy last week of summer break.  The boys return to school on September 4th.  On one hand, I’m ready for it…on the other hand, it will be very quiet around the house :(  However, fall soccer and fall baseball starts that week too.  No time to relax!  So, on with a card!!

      I had seen this technique on the SplitCoastStampers website recently, Distress Watercolor Dry Embossing, and I had to give it a try.  While the technique is fairly simple, I’m not real happy with the way it turned out.  I used the Flower Garden Embossing Folder and I think that’s where the problem is.  I think that there should be larger area within the raised embossing in which to watercolor.  This image is just too close, too small, too busy.  I don’t have an image that would be better…yet. 

     Anyway, like I said, the technique is fairly simple.  Using Watercolor Paper, dry emboss with folder of your choice.  Heat emboss the raised embossing with clear embossing powder.  Wet paper with water and watercolor as desired.  I used an Aqua Painter and re-inkers to do this.  I also gave the background a light watercolor wash of Bashful Blue. 

     It’s not a bad looking card.  I prefer a different folder and my watercoloring skills could be brushed up…a lot!  All in all, the card is pretty cute.  A Bashful Blue base, layer of Primrose Petals and a strip of scalloped Certainly Celery.  The sentiment has long since been retired and is stamped and layered on Early Espresso.  I like the color combo.  What do you think?

     By the way, although this didn’t turn out quite how I’d liked it to, it did inspire another card.  I will show that soon :)  Thanks for stopping in today.  I’m so glad you did!

Hugs,

Leslee

Stampin’ Up! supplies can be purchased here.

Scenic Bits

     I’m so glad that this gorgeous image panel didn’t get thrown out!  I couldn’t find a nice fit for it when I made it but it works great now!  A friend of mine recently said, “It is amazing how we can utilize things that may have ended up in the bin when we use a fresh eye.”  Thanks, Paula!  That perfectly sums up what this Bits And Pieces utilization is all about.  A fresh eye and new perspective can make all the difference.

   A few points of interest: 

• The image is on Watercolor Paper that was misted with water and sponges were used to “brush” on Classic inks. 
• The grass is from the Inspired By Nature set that is, sadly, on the Retiring Stamps List and available only until May 31, 2012. 
• The sentiment is found in the Loving Thoughts set which is in the Occasions Mini Catalog available until April 30, 2012.

    

     Remember, this is what I was picking my Bits And Pieces out of.  A daunting task to say the least but it has been so very rewarding.

     Thanks for stopping by today.  I hope you’ve been inspired to step away and return with a fresh perspective :)

Hugs,

Leslee

All supplies can be purchased here.

Just for Me!!

 

    Stampin’ Up! recently held a Book-a-thon.  Demonstrators were challenged to book workshops on a certain day in hopes of meeting a world-wide booking goal (which we did!).  On top of the incentive that Stampin’ Up! gave us demonstrators (free stamps!), my upline, the uber talented Susan Elise Morton, said that she would give all in her downline, who book a workshop, a special project just from her.  Naturally, I participated and this is the project she sent to me.  Of course, it was in pieces and I needed only to watercolor the floral image (from Bordering on Romance) and adhere the card together.  It’s a lovely design and I wanted to share it with you :)    I watercolored the image with my Aqua Painter and the Classic inks – Island Indigo, Pear Pizzazz and So Saffron.  The center flower is cut out and popped up on a Dimensional. 

     Workshops are so much fun!  If you’d like to host one of your own, let me know and I’ll help you get it scheduled.  Sale-A-Bration is a great time to host your own workshop!  With all the FREE goodies to choose from, how can you go wrong?

     Thanks for stopping in.  I hope you’ve been inspired :)

Hugs,

Leslee

Bordering On Romance

 

 

     This is such an elegant one layer card that we did at this month’s Stamp Clubs.  The floral image is from the new Bordering On Romance set.  I stamped it in Jet Black StazOn ink and used my Aqua Painter to color it in with Classic Marina Mist, Baja Breeze, Pear Pizzazz and Craft Whisper White.  The sentiment is from Bring On The Cake, stamped in Soft Suede.  I wished I used Early Espresso instead…it would have showed up better, in my opinion.  The butterflies simply are a folded piece of Blushing Bride that I punched with the Small Heart punch.  I love being able to think outside of the box and get double the use with my supplies :)  The card base is Baja Breeze.  I used the new Adorning Accents Edgelits Die and the new coordinating Adorning Accents Textured Impressions Embossing Folder (now that’s a mouthful).  I, also, ran the inside edge through the Big Shot with the hearts folder in the Adorning Accents TIEF set.  I then sponged the edges of all with Soft Suede to give it an aged look.  Love it!!

     Quick tip --  When using the Edgelits Dies, secure the wafer-thin die to the card stock using a sticky note.  Stampin’ Up! suggests using Dotto but, since I don’t have any, I had to come up with something else to temporarily hold the die in place.  Without it, the dies would have a tendency to slip when I ran it through the Big Shot. :(  I tried SNAIL, Tombow Multipurpose glue and the 2-Way Glue pen…all to no avail.  The sticky notes work great, are thin enough to not effect the cut in anyway and will lift off without messing up the card stock.

     Thanks for popping in today.  I hope you’ve been inspired to give these new dies and folders a try.

Hugs,

Leslee

Supplies are Stampin’ Up! and can be purchased here.

French Foliage Birthday Wishes

 

     This card just makes me happy!  The natural colors and clean lines work very nicely together.  It just seems to brighten the day :)

     Once again, I used the French Foliage set along with Watercolor Crayons.  I, also, colored up the small Acrylic Block A with the crayons, misted with water and randomly stamped the Whisper White layer.  It was then layered onto Early Espresso, wrapped with Linen Thread and finished with a Daffodil Delight Designer Button – Bright.  The scrap layers are Daffodil Delight and Lucky Limeade. 

     Again, a quick and easy card.  Thanks for stopping in.  I hope you’ve been inspired to color on your acrylic blocks.  Such a nice effect to the project :)

Hugs,

Leslee

Stampin’ Up! supplies can be purchased here.

Give Thanks Set

 

       Autumn is my favorite season!  I love the change of outdoor scenery.  God’s canvas offers a lot to be inspired by!  Well, the leaves here in Virginia aren’t quite ready to change just yet but it won’t be long.  The weather is beginning to get cooler and nightfall is getting earlier.  I guess I’m ready for this change because I couldn’t wait to break out my French Foliage set and rich, warm and natural colors. 

     This cute little fall project was designed for my Stamp Club.  It features the use of the new Simply Scored tool, the beautiful Hand-Penned Holidays set, the sparkly Dazzling Details glitter glue and cute little 1” x 8” Cellophane Bags (all found in the current Holiday Mini Catalog).  The project also features Watercolor Crayons and the direct-to-stamp technique. 

     I am so loving the Simply Scored tool!  It really makes quick work of any scored project.  The medallion and the box were both made on the Simply Scored tool.  Why do you need a Simply Scored when you have the Paper Cutter with Scoring blade?  (I knew you would ask that.)  The answer…this tool is so much quicker.  There is no lifting and realigning of the card stock.  Score lines are every 1/8”.  I only wish Stampin’ Up! offered it sooner :)  Trust me, it is a must have! 

     If you’d like to learn just how the Simply Scored works, consider hosting a workshop.  I’ll be happy to show you just how simple it is to create this lovely box & medallion. 

     Thanks for stopping in today.  I hope you can find inspiration in the things you find outside your door :)

Hugs,

Leslee

All supplies are Stampin’ Up! and can be purchased here.

Snow Much Fun

      I have finally been able to start a monthly stamp club.  I’m so very excited about it!  Until now, I haven’t been able to get enough people together on the same evening to start a club.  Persistence pays off…finally!  Yay me!

      I wasn’t quite sure just where to begin with this group.  It’s a very diverse group of ladies and I think that’s going to make it so much fun and, yet, a bit more of a challenge.  Everyone is on a different level of stamping.  Well, I decided to start easy and explore the Blender Pen.  Along with the pen, we explored the use of different color mediums.

 

     For this cute snowman card, we used Watercolor Pencils.  I love how you can use the pencil to outline the image and then use your Blender Pen to move the pencil around.  I don’t know why I don’t use these pencils more often?  We, also, made the cute little altered envelope to fit a 4.25” square card.  Check out this previous post for more details.  BTW, I checked with out post office and these envelopes ARE mailable (is that a word?), however, there will be an additional 20 cent fee because it will have to be hand-cancelled.  They can’t send the square sizes through the machine (something about not feeding through the machine correctly).  Anyway, good to know!  I can make as many of these as I want now!  And they are so much fun to make!!

     Here is the card that didn’t make the stamp club cut.  Same layout…I just didn’t like the colors of this guy’s hat along with the Nautical Expedition DSP.  Both are such cute cards. 

     I did one more card for our meeting.  We made an easel card.  I’ll show you that next time.  The ladies seemed to like the projects.  My first stamp club meeting was a success!  Now…what to do next month???

     Thanks for stopping by today.  I hope you’ve been inspired to break out the Watercolor Pencils or simply use a medium that you haven’t used in awhile.  You’ll be glad you did.

Hugs,

Leslee

All supplies are Stampin’ Up! and can be purchased here.

Strength & Hope – Thank You

     This is the first chance I’ve had to even play with this lovely new set, Strength & Hope.  Since this is a “card-0f-firsts”, I also gave my Watercolor Pencils a go and tried my hand at the Framed Tulips Textured Impressions Embossing Folder on a square panel.  For the butterfly, I used my Watercolor Pencils directly onto the stamp and then misted the stamp with water before stamping it onto a piece of Whisper White card stock. 

     Each of these techniques will require a bit more refining.  Overall, I am very satisfied at how this card turned out.  Thanks for stopping by today.  I hope you’ve been inspired to give something that you’ve been putting off a try!  You just might like how it turns out!

Hugs,

Leslee

All supplies are Stampin’ Up! and can be purchased here.

Misted Sympathy

 

     I was again in need of a sympathy card.  This has been a very difficult summer for my family.  This makes the 5th passing since the end of May.  Anyway, I had just received the Just Believe set and it seemed a good time to ink it up.  I markered the florals in Garden Green, Pretty In Pink and Rich Razzleberry.  Tip:  Remember to apply the lighter colors first, that way you won’t muddy up your light colored marker with a darker color ink.  I misted the stamp with a water mister and then stamped the image onto Whisper White card stock.  The misting gives the image a nice, subtle watercolored look.  I tore the edge to a desirable look and layered it onto the torn Certainly Celery and Rich Razzleberry card stock.  A length of retired 1/2” Rich Razzleberry Polka Dot ribbon (dots down) was adhered around the bottom along with one of the new Rich Razzleberry - Brights Designer Buttons with a linen thread center.  Then all was adhered onto a Crumb Cake card base.  The sentiment is from the Thoughts & Prayers set. 

     That’s it for today.  I’ll be MIA for a few days.  I must prepare for our Fun In The Sun party coming this Friday.  I have several flower beds that are in need of weeding :)  I’m sure lots of flowers will be reveled giving me lots of inspiration for future cards and projects.  Thanks for stopping in today.

Hugs,

~Leslee~

All supplies are Stampin’ Up! and can be purchased HERE unless noted as being retired.

Impressionism Art

These cards were extremely simple to create.  Of course, I was inspired by this card while browsing the SCS gallery.  I, pretty much, cased the card exactly.  Only, I ended up with two cards based on the one.  Funny how you start out to case a card exactly only to find you’ve strayed and created something similar yet new, much like Impressionistic Art .  You’ve got to love creativity!  And you never know what may inspire you.

This first card was created by first spraying a piece of Watercolor Paper with water and then stamping on the image.  Allow it to dry completely (I put a heat gun to mine…I’m impatient like that) and then re-stamp the image on top. 

 

On the second card, I stamped the image on the watercolor paper and then sprayed it with water, allowing it to run.  Again, dry completely and re-stamp the image on top.  The outcome is not so different from the first card but crisper and cleaner.  Personally, I like the look of this one better.  However, they are both gorgeous cards!   

Both cards feature the Watercolor Trio set,  Rich Razzleberry & Always Artichoke card stock and markers.  The first card has a layer of Sahara Sand cs, uses the Scallop Edge punch, Vintage Brads and the sentiment is from Watercolor Trio also.  The second card is layered on Presto Patterns Specialty Designer Series Paper, which I sponged on Rich Razzleberry Classic Ink and then used a paper towel to remove any excess ink from the image.  It also uses the Scallop Border Edge punch.

There you have it…two quick and simple cards, inspired by one.  Thanks Julie for the inspiration!  I hope you’ve been inspired too.  Let me know what you think by leaving a comment.  Your comments inspire me as well.  Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs,

~Leslee~

All supplies are Stampin’ Up! and can be purchased HERE!

“W” is for…

Watercoloring

I love to watercolor.  It is almost therapeutic to me.  Now, I’m no artist by any means, but give me an image to watercolor and I can handle it.  Proper shading and keeping in mind where your light source is coming from comes with practice.  Just remember, it is only paper and ink and if you like it, that’s all that counts!

There are tons of watercolor mediums on the market today.  My favorite is Stampin’ Up!®’s Watercolor Wonder Crayons and an Aqua Painter.  Of course, this works best when adding color to lined images.  Today, I used the direct to stamp technique. 

   

Using the large floral image from the lovely Wonderful Watercolors Two-Step Stampin’ set, I colored the flowers with the Perfect Plum Watercolor Crayon and the stem with the Mellow Moss crayon.  I misted water onto a piece of Naturals White card stock and then onto the stamp before stamping it to the card stock.  Then, using my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, I lined up the outline to the image.  I colored this with Close To Cocoa crayon, misted the stamp and stamped it over the first image.  The sentiment is from Whimsical Words and stamped in Chocolate Chip ink.  The Build-A-Brad, something else I tend to hoard, was stamped in the same technique using the smallest flower.  The 1/2” circle punch fits perfect with these brads.  A Chocolate Chip Taffeta ribbon snippet is behind the brad.  The Chocolate Chip panel is from the scrap box and it is all layered onto a Sage Shadow card base.  I think these colors work well together.  It’s another ‘soft’ card that will make a nice sympathy card (of which I need several). 

Thanks for looking!  I hope you give watercoloring a try (if you hadn’t already).  Experiment with the different mediums and fall in love with them all!

Hugs,

~Leslee~

All supplies are Stampin’ Up!® and can be purchased HERE unless otherwise noted as being retired.

Busy, busy, busy!

No, I didn’t fall off the face of the earth.  I know I told you that I had plenty to show and I do.  It’s just finding the time to sit down and post it to the blog that hasn’t happened.  ‘Busy’ has been my middle name lately. 

My sister and her husband were in from Denver, CO for a visit.   It was so wonderful to spend some time with them!  They left this morning.  They are headed back to Mom & Dad’s in OH and then back to Denver.  I’m so glad they came the extra miles to spend time with us!  They got to see Jess’ soccer practice.  We had a bonfire on Saturday…roasted hot dogs (Adam’s favorite), marshmallows and made S’mores…yum!  The boys were doted upon…lots of hugs and kisses (smile!)  We topped off the weekend with a trip to our favorite Mexican restaurant.  It went way to fast and we hated to let them leave.

Anyway, on to the card…

This was a really quick card I made for my father-in-law’s birthday.  Don wanted me to use this cute little crab and he gave me all of 20 minutes to get it completed in.  You see, his dad was a waterman and fished blue crabs for a living.  So, this is the card I came up with.

I simply sponged on some Sahara Sand and a bit of Sage Shadow.  I added the “seaweed” in Old Olive using the grass from the Inspired by Nature set.  The crab is from the retired Fishy Friends set.  He was stamped in Jet Black StazOn and colored using my Aqua Painter and Watercolor Crayons.  He is cut out and adhered to the sponged panel with a dimensional.  (Isn’t he cute?) The sentiment is from an old retired favorite, Warmest Regards.  The sponged panel was then adhered to a Soft Suede card base.

The card took less than 10 minutes.  It received approval from the entire family.  My father-in-law really liked it.

Thanks for checking it out.  Comments are always welcome.  This month is just a really busy month for me.  I keep thinking that “next week will be better”…hmmm.  Maybe next week WILL be better?!

Hugs ~Leslee~

All supplies except for the retired stamp sets can be purchased through my website.

Thoughts of Autumn

I don’t know what it is about cooler weather…it just puts me in the mood to stamp pumpkins, gourds, colorful leaves and spooky scenes. I love fall! And since I’ve kept you waiting long enough for this post (yes, it’s been way to long between postings), I’ll give you two cards today.

Here’s the first…

I love the masking technique! The most difficult part of masking is the tedious chore of cutting your masks out. The results are well worth your effort though! I save my masks for reuse. I just use cheap sticky notes and they will last through many uses. This Autumn Harvest set is perfect for creating a fall scene that is perfect for water coloring. I love to water color too! Here I’ve used my classic inks with an Aqua Painter. I stamped my images in Jet Black StazOn on Very Vanilla card stock. Here’s a close up of the scene with a popped up leaf for visual interest.

The ribbon is the reverse side of the Soft Suede Polka Dot ribbon. Card base is Old Olive and the scalloped edge strip of Pumpkin Pie is scraps that I had laying about my desk (yep…still using up scraps…I love that too!)

This next card is very CAS-ified but it uses the same supplies and techniques.

The sentiments on both cards are from Kind & Caring Thoughts Hostess set.

These were placed on the inside of the card.

I find that creating these little masked scenes are fun and relaxing. I hope you have been inspired to create a masked scene of your own. Thanks for stopping by today!

Hugs ~Leslee~

Ready for Autumn?

Happy Tuesday to you! What a wonderful day the Lord has made!!! Of course, He does have a sense of humor. The boys headed back to school today. We had no major issues other than the unknown location of Adam's umbrella. I let him use mine. Yes, it is raining! In that is God's humor. You see, He knows just how much I've been looking forward to the boys heading back to school and me getting back into a routine (having the house to myself)...well, He sends the rain and I have hubby Don home today. Hmmm....so much for my plans....God has other plans for my day. That's okay! It's been awhile since Don and I have spent a day together without the kids! So, I look at today as another gift from God! I hope you see your daily gifts too.

Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that once the kids go back to school the weather turns cool pretty quickly? It has been a hot summer and I'm ready for the cooler days of autumn. The guys and I went camping in our own backyard over Labor Day. We pitched the tents, had a campfire, roasted hot dogs and marshmallows, and enjoyed the crisp evening air by the fire. For me, it was chilly and I ended up in long sleeves. Once back at my desk, I wanted to capture that autumn feeling in my card. The Autumn Harvest set is simply a go to favorite! I love using it for water coloring and masking. And that's just what I did here.

Do you like it? The layout is the Fall-to Layout #52 found over at the Clean & Simple Stamping blog. The leaves are stamped on Whisper White cs in Jet Black StazOn ink and masked to give it that layered depth. I used my water colored crayons and an Aqua painter to color my leaves. The image strip is layered onto Old Olive and a scrap strip of Razzleberry Lemonade DSP...all found on my desk. Yes, I'm still trying to use up my scraps! The sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes. I simply punched the end of the sentiment panel using the Eyelet Border punch. I like the look. An extra leaf was stamped, colored and placed on a dimensional over the sentiment panel. All is adhered to the Barely Banana cs (yet another scrap) and layered onto the Basic Black card base (which was in my stash of pre-cut and scored card bases).

So, are you ready for autumn? Whether we are ready or not...I think it's here! Have a great day! Thanks for stopping in.

Hugs~Leslee~

After vacation blahs...

Ever notice that after vacation you need a vacation? Well, that's how I'm feeling. You take five days off and it takes ten days to play catch up. I'm exhausted now. Anyhoo....my house is clean, the bills are paid and the companies are all caught up! So, it's time to get back into the swing of things...a somewhat "normal" routine (if there is such a thing). Like two younglings howling that there's nothing to do is "normal", right? I did promise that we would start doing some fun summer stuff and I am going to uphold my end of the bargain...as long as they let me get some of my stamping time in. I have all good intentions to get some much needed scrap booking done too. I actually have vacation pictures to scrap this year!

Okay...enough blathering...on with the goodies....

I held my annual New Catalog Open House this past weekend. It was so nice to see everyone! I really enjoy the time we spend together. Over the next few days, I'll be posting the cards that I had made for the Open House. I'll start by showing you this card.

I had seen the cattails done about a year ago on the SCS site. I'm sorry, I don't remember who I had gotten the idea from but I have been meaning to do this ever since I first saw it. I put a wash of watercolor on for the background. I misted water directly onto watercolor paper and then used a sponge to lightly brush on some color (Dusty Durango & Crushed Curry--yes, new In-colors). Then in Soft Suede, I stamped the grasses from the set Inspired by Nature. The cattails are made by using the punch out pieces from the slot punch (in Choc. Chip). I adhered these using my 2-way glue pen. I matted the watercolored image onto Naturals Ivory card stock. I simply tore the edges and drug it across the Soft Suede ink pad. Some natural hemp twine on opposing corners and it's all layered onto a Dusty Durango card base. I really love how this card turned out. It has a very masculine feel to it. Change the colors and it could be very feminine. I think I will have to try it.

This next card is the same concept, same colors, different layout of the colors and no cattails. I used linen thread in the corners and added the sentiment from Teeny Tiny Wishes, that I had punched out with the word window punch. I had sponged a bit of Soft Suede on the background too. Again, a real masculine card. What do you think?

Well, that's it for today. I hope you've been inspired to give that thing you've been wanting to do a try. I finally did and love it!!!! Thanks for stopping by, come again soon.

Hugs ~Leslee~

The Winner is....

Kerrie Campbell!

Kerrie's winning entry in the Last Chance Pick 10! yielded only two correct picks but it was one more than any one else! She won the stamp sets Darling Dots and Sweet Little Sentiments. Congratulations to Kerrie!

Thanks to everyone who entered! You all will receive $5 off your first order of $50 or more from the new 2009-2010 Idea Book & Catalog. What a great way to start a new catalog!

Let's play again next year! This was a lot of fun!

As for my picks, I didn't do so well. Out of the 54 sets I chose, only 21 of them were actually on the Last Chance list. Of course, there were 99 total on the list. So, you do the math...I didn't do so well! But, I had fun! I realized that what I thought should go certainly isn't what Stampin' Up! thinks.

You can check out the Last Chance list by clicking HERE! And HERE for the Last Chance Decor Elements list. This link will take you directly to the customer website Last Chance items. Some items are as much as 50% off. Check it out. Accessories are available only while supplies last so don't wait to order.

I am going to miss Heartfelt Thanks! This was one of the first sets I purchased and it is an all-time favorite of mine. So, here are just a few of the cards I've made using this set.

For the above card, I applied Watercolor Wonder Crayons directly to the stamp, misted with water and stamped onto paper. I also used the Watercolor Joy wheel up the side.For this one, I embossed the flower in white embossing powder on Basic Black card stock. I then colored over the embossing using my blender pen and Stampin' Pastels. This is a personal favorite card!

This one, I mass produced for a sideline swap. I used the rock-n-roll technique on the solid flower. Then stamped the outline flower repeatedly (stamping off) to create a soft background. I placed a mini glue dot in the flower center and covered it with glitter. An easy card to do.

Thanks for stopping by today. Sorry I didn't post sooner. I was having computer issues. By the time the boys got home from school, I had all but given up. Anyway, I think the kinks are worked out now (keeping fingers crossed).

Let me know what you think about the Last Chance list. Agree...disagree? Just can't wait for the new catty now?

~Leslee~

Clean & Simple

Sometimes, the challenge is to refrain from all the layers and embellishments and keep it clean and simple (CAS)! SplitcoastStampers features a CAS Challenge on Monday. I will often refer to the weekly CAS when I am limited on time. This week, the challenge was to add distressing to your clean and simple card.

Here is what I came up with....

I love to distress! Often, distressing adds that missing touch or will hide the slight (or, sometimes, not-so-slight) imperfections. I learned this when the boys were younger and sticky fingers would grab the cards off my desk. Many times, I would sponge on some ink to cover up the smudges. It certainly beats having to toss a nice looking card into the circular file. Today, I do a lot less 'covering up' but still love the look that distressing a project adds.

I used three forms of distressing on this card.

1) I sponged some ink onto the edges (no, I had no smudges to cover).

2) I used my distressing tool (SU! Cutter Kit), to 'rough it up' .

3) I wet the card stock, crumpled it up, smoothed it back out and let it dry. This is great to use when corners get bent or your paper gets creased. Don't toss that paper...use it to your advantage.

Remember what I always say...."There are no mistakes. Only creative opportunities!"

Thanks for stopping in. I hope you've been inspired.

~Leslee~

Supplies (all SU!):

Stamps: Dear Friends hostess Level 1

Paper: Whisper White, Barely Banana, Watercolor paper

Ink: Sahara Sand, Barely Banana, Summer Sun, Old Olive, Certainly Celery, Jet Black StazOn

Accessories: Aqua Painter, Cutter kit, water mister (non-SU!), Stampin' Dimensionals, Linen Thread