La Dolce Vita

A new challenge has just gone live at Time Out Challenges and we would like to see how you are inspired by Sweet Treats!

Challenge #305 is generously being sponsored by Lawn Fawn and they are offering our Top Pick as chosen by the design teams a $25 credit to their store!  

The Top Pick will also be invited to join Time Out as a guest designer in a future challenge!  Speaking of guest designers, our guest designer this fortnight is the very talented Dawn of Dawn's World our winner from Challenge #305!   You can check out how Dawn and my talented team mates were inspired by their favourite card making techniques over on the Time Out Blog!

This Strawberry Charlotte die came in last year's Gummiapan Advent Calendar and being NBUS was my first thought for this challenge!  The Dolce Vite banner die (Spellbinders) was also a recent acquisition and as La Dolce Vite literally translates to The Sweet Life, it seemed the perfect sentiment.  Then it was just a matter of deciding out how to put a card together.  In the end I chose another NBUS die to frame the dessert (also from last year's Gummiapan Advent Calendar).

With a little snipping, I was able to build up layers to give the dessert some dimension.   I also shaped the lady fingers with a stylus and 'winked' them to give the appearance of a sugar coating but this wasn't picked up by the camera unfortunately.

I am grateful for and would like to enter the following challenges

NBUS Challenge #85 - NBUS Charlotte die, frame and sentiment

The Paper Players PP779 - First Column (Die-cut, Circle, Sparkle);

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you go away a little inspired!  Your visits and comments are always a joy and always appreciated!  And if you leave a comment, I’ll know you were here and how to find you!

Kate

Jolly Jumping Elf

 Sparkles Christmas Challenge 183 has just gone live and Melanie has chosen Elves and Gnomes as our theme for April!

For this challenge I pulled out this jolly little elf (Charlie & Paulchen Wichtelreihe), which was a good thing as I had forgotten I'd bought this little box die (Charlie & Paulchen Kleine Geschenk Box) for him to jump out from. 

The elf was cut from white card stock and coloured with alcohol markers and his beard was also cut from white felt.  I coloured his little shoes black and added a little glossy accents so they'd shine

For his nose, I coloured it with a flesh coloured marker and coated it with glossy accents to make it bulbous.

Here's a closeup

I added a trimmed down wobble element behind his back to give the impression he really is jumping out of that box and also so he would stand clear of this large sentiment (Waltzing Mouse Stamps 'Tis the Season) - I'm having printer issues at the moment but I would have liked to say "Have your-elf a merry little Christmas"!

The rather splendid frame is from the 2023 Gummiapan Advent Calendar.

I am grateful for and would like to enter the following challenges:

NBUS Challenge #85 - NBUS Cloud Frame and Box;

Die Traumfabrik - Sweet Little Things (Anything Small);

Inkspirational Challenge #364 - CAS, E is for Elf;

Peace on Earth Challenge #108 - Anything Christmas Goes;

Jingle Belles - Walking in a Whimsical Wonderland;

ABC Christmas Challenge - E is for Elf;

The Outlawz April Christmas Challenge - Anything Christmas Goes;

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you go away a little inspired!  Your visits and comments are always a joy and always appreciated!  And if you leave a comment, I’ll know you were here and how to find you!

Kate

Ahoy 70

 

Challenge #300 has just gone live at Time Out Challenges and this fortnight we have the theme

In the Clear 

We would like to see you use at least one clear element on your project.   That might be acetate, vellum, glossy accents, crystal drops etc. - as long as you can see through it, it's clear!

Challenge #309 is generously being sponsored by Uniko and they are offering our Top Pick as chosen by the design teams £25 credit to their store!  

The Top Pick will also be invited to join Time Out as a guest designer in a future challenge!  Speaking of guest designers, our guest designer this fortnight is our winner from Challenge #304!   You can check out how xx and my talented team mates have interpreted our CLEAR theme over on the Time Out Blog!

My husband is a bit of a sea dog and around this time of the year I'm always trying to think of a new nautical idea for his birthday ... and this year it's a big one!

This clear theme was the perfect opportunity to dig out this NBUS window die (Memory Box Ocean Porthole) and a yellow submarine (Gummiapan Cute Submarine) seemed like the perfect thing to put on the other side of that window!

I cut an aperture in a front panel and the card front using a circle die slightly larger than my porthole and sandwiched a sheet of acetate between them.  Then I cut the porthole twice - to cover the hole on the front and back sides of the aperture (inside of the card).  I cut them from the same dark grey card stock but applied gilding wax to get that tarnished brass look!

The submarine was cut three times.  The bottom layer was kept intact.  The next layer up, I trimmed off the periscope and propellor.  From the last submarine I trimmed off the turret.  These Gummiapan dies are designed so that you only need to snip in one or two places to build up 3-D images.  Finally I cut just the porthole from another snippet and removed the inside window part.  I blacked out the window then added the porthole on top.  I cut all the layers from yellow cardstock but added shading with alcohol markers.  To give the submarine's porthole a glassy appearance I added glossy accents.

I found this DP featuring ocean creatures and cut a circle just large enough to be seen through the porthole.  In this way the DP was visible through the window but there was enough white space inside on which to write (I thought the pattern was a bit too busy)!

So I hope I've given you some ideas on using a clear element and I hope you can take some Time Out and join us this fortnight.  You have until the April 1st to link up your entries ... we can't wait to see how you get In the Clear this fortnight!

I and grateful for and would like to enter the following challenges

NBUS Challenge #84 - NBUS dies - Ocean Porthole, Cute Submarine;

Shopping Our Stash Challenge SOS569 - I'm Counting On You (use numbers);

Krafty Chicks Challenge #812 - CAS;

Neglected Stuff Challenge March - Porthole die has been waiting since May 2023 to be used, Submarine since January 2024;

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you go away a little inspired!  Your visits and comments are always a joy and always appreciated!  And if you leave a comment, I’ll know you were here and should be able to find you!

Kate