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sUMMER cARD cAMP WITH jENNIFER AND kRISTINA!

 On Mondays, we get a color scheme for the week. When I saw it, I was horrified, of course. Magenta, fuchsia, aqua and orange. YIKES! How'd they get in my head and choose the four colors most likely to make me uncomfortable? Well, three, really, because I love aqua.

 This top card was my third try, and my favorite. It is inspired by Jennifer McGuire's card this week. The sentiment is from A Muse Studio's Hand Scripted set, which I LOVE! The little glittered butterfly was cut with a|s's Butterfly Trio die-so sweet! I also used Beautiful Botanicals and BB2 from a|s.

 This was my second try, inspired by Kristina Werner's card this week. It's better than my first, and probably the best CAS card I've ever made. Restraint is not my game, baby! I'm all about excess!!

 I used Cool Caribbean and My Mind's Eye Everyday Tango on all of these, they fit the color challenge perfectly. Aren't you jealous that I still have some Cool Caribbean?

 This was my first attempt at working with these colors. This poor card was torn apart and put back together about a dozen times. Sheesh, was I having a hard time making something that wasn't truly hideous!

Jennifer and Kristina are definitely getting me out of my comfort zone, and that's a good thing. I've really been enjoying the Summer Camp and am so glad I signed up to take it.

Tags, Tags, Tags

 Tags sell really well in my Etsy shop. I've sold hundreds of them, so I continue to add new designs so people will always have something new to see when they stop by my shop.

 This beautiful perfume label is from Dover. I just print them off and dip their edges in Art Institute's Angel Dust. HOOOWEEE, are they pretty!

 Here's an Inkadinkado stamp that at least half of you have, I'm sure!

 Inkadinkado is my favorite of the BIG GUYS.

 These sweet tags were made with two A Muse Studio stamps. The cage is from Life is a Song, and the bird is from Avian Notes. I love 'em!

Well, Troy, who I haven't seen in two weeks just walked in so, I'm outa here! Toodles girlfriends! Happy Fourth to you and yours!!

Black, Gray, Pink and Red

 This is the paper that has been on my desk lately, so this is what I've been using. I'm over this color scheme now, but I still have lots of projects to share from the week or so that I used only these colors.

 I guess I'm a super lazy paper crafter, because I just use whatever is nearest. Of course I'll get up for ribbon or other embellishments, but if I can make what is within arm's reach work, then that's what I use!

 I think I did four lay outs with this color scheme, all about love and friendship. Yes, I added glitter.

 Some leftover snippets became this little card.

I had a scare last night. Our youngest, who is seven, got in the way of a baseball bat and caught it right between the eyes. It split the skin all the way to the membrane covering the skull. It was a harrowing experience, and doubly bad because Troy is at K State taking a class. Why do these things happen when he walks out the door? Don't worry, Wilson is okay and upstairs stomping around like Rumpelstiltskin, which is what Troy and I call him. He's 54 pounds of noise, I tell ya.

I have grabbed him, held him and smothered him with kisses every time he has been within reach today. He was so brave. It makes me cry just to think of how well he has handled all this-including the tetanus shot he had to get today. Some days mothering is real work, you know what I mean?

Of Friendship and Paradise

 This card features A Muse Studio's Vintage Labels stamp set and the coordinating Labels Dies. I love these because they come with a clear positioning plate, which allows you to mark exactly where the metal die should be to cut your stamped image perfectly.

 Of course I added some ribbon and some handmade paper flowers, and a couple from my Prima stash. Those things last forever, don't they? The sentiment is a Basic Grey rub-on.

 Here is some Crafty Secret goodness! The ocean truly is paradise for me! White sandy beaches and blue seas-that's the life for me**SIGH**

You may remember me pondering whether I should apply to be on the CS design team. Well, at the last minute, I did apply, and was not one of the lucky (and super talented) ones chosen. The same day I found out I had not made it, several CS cards sold in my Etsy shop. I guess I'm finally old enough not to be much bothered by these things. While I'm certainly not happy I didn't make it, I am also not especially bothered by it either. I love Crafty Secrets. It has been one of my top three favorite companies for about six years now. I adore their products, and always have fun when I use them. They sell with great regularity from my Etsy shop. Really, is there anything to be upset about? Those of you who are much younger than I may not have reached this easy ability to let things go. But, as the Rolling Stones always say, "You can't always get what you want, but if you try, sometimes you get what you need!"

Toodles girlfriends! Remember, we are doing this for fun!!!

A Scrapbook Page and CPS 223

 

This layout has a little journaling tag which slides out. It looks like there are a ton of different papers here, and while there are five or six, a lot of it is just the pattered paper. It's old HOTP paper, and is designed to look layered.

                                       

 This is the first challenge I have done in over a year, I think. My job of the past two years required 10-14 hour days of me for six months of the school year, and pretty much my whole life has been my job and recovering from my job. I resigned as Drama Director and next year, I will just be a regular old overworked teacher, not an insanely overworked teacher.

I want to get back to my blog and my stamping friends and all the silly little things we do for pleasure. CPS was the first challenge outside of SCS challenges that I ever did. I loved it way back when, and I love it now. I used A Muse Studio's Birthday Builder on this card. It's such a fun and clever little set. It is part of a|s's Clearly Creative line, which makes it an absolute cinch to line up and stamp perfectly every time! That gray grosgrain ribbon is part of what's left from a ribbon swap I did with TexasJodyLynn about five years ago. I guess I don't use a lot of gray! The crown is a leftover from a large custom order on Etsy. They were tags for school treat bags for three brothers. Each boy had his own color combo using two of these three: black, gray and red.

Toodles, girlfriends! I'm off to continue to try to get my house in order. I need to CLEAN, do some remodeling finishing touches, and rearrange the living room. What are you doing this summer?

A Muse Studio June Blog Hop

Please hop on over to my A Muse Studio blog for the hop! Thank you! Carla's A Muse Studio