Four Ways Friday #96 - Papaya Collage

This week's Four Ways Friday is all about playing with the Papaya Collage stamp set!  Have fun!

Let's begin with simply stamping - just ink and stamps.  This card actually was not designed to turn out this way, but a mistake with stamping the first frame turned this card into an opportunity :)  I actually like what happened!  I stamped the bird first and then stamped the bird onto copy paper and cut it out to create a mask.  I temporarily adhered the mask over the bird and then stamped the first frame at full strength and the additional frames at half and 1/3 strength with Midnight Muse.  Next came the leaves - also at half and 1/3 strength with Gumball Green.  Finally I stamped the sentiment from Bring On The Cake at full strength with Gumball Green.

The images in this set are perfect for layering, layering, layering!  Here I stamped the rose onto multiple pieces of Very Vanilla cs that I then separated with Wild Wasabi cs.  I was inspired by this technique video by Dawn Olchefske.  The bird and hat were both stamped and then cut out.  I then stamped the flourish image onto Primrose Petals cs with Primose Petals ink.  A piece of Crumb Cake seam binding and the sentiment from Itty Bitty Banners finishes the card.

This set has some beautiful images for creating borders and backgrounds.  I began with a piece of Crumb Cake cs that I folded in half and then folded one edge down at 1 1/4".  I then stamped the leaf image in Crumb Cake all over the cs - on the outside panel and on the inside panel.  Next, with the help of the stamp-a-ma-jig, I stamped the circle flourish image across the 1 1/4" band on the card using Raspberry Ripple ink.  I used my piercing tool to add the antique brad.  Then, I sewed the edges of the card down and gently brushed the white thread with Crumb Cake stampin' pastel to blend the thread color into the card.  I then took a piece of Raspberry Ripple cs and layered it with a piece of Crumb Cake cs and stamped the greeting from Loving Thoughts.  Here is a look at the "card" outside of the "pocket."

The frame stamp also makes a wonderful frame for pictures for your cards or scrapbook pages.  I'm not a big scrapbooker (although I'm tempted to start to try a few pages), so I made the frame into a card for Michael from our cat Willow :)

I stamped the frame onto a rectangle of Whisper White cs at half strength and then cut out the inside rectangle.  I then printed a picture of Willow and adhered the frame on top using dimensionals.  Next I added a few rhinestones to the frame.  I then placed the frame on top of a piece of Basic Black cs that I had run through the Big Shot with the Lacy Brocade embossing folder.  That piece was then adhered onto a Whisper White card base.  Next, I stamped the circle flourish image onto a piece of Primrose Petals cs and added a punched Lovely Little Label :)  Finally, a touch of stitched Raspberry Ripple stitched ribbon.
I hope you've enjoyed this week's Four Ways Friday!  I hope it inspires you to have fun with the Papaya Collage stamp set...or to use another stamp set in some of the ways that you see here!  Wishing you a wonderfully peaceful, creative and love-filled weekend!!!!!

Throwback Thursday: Cool Cat

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Paper In My House Multiplies!!!

When I was little we had pet fish.  I remember when they would die I couldn't bear to flush them down the toilet (the approach recommended by my dad) so I would take little matchboxes and place the fish inside and then go and bury the tiny box by the mailbox.  It was a very exciting day when my parents agreed to allow us to have 2 gerbils that were offered to us by a friend.  The friend said that they were two girl gerbils and we believed her...until we woke up one morning and had 8 gerbils!  Needless to say, my mom was not thrilled.  Well, I've decided that paper in my home is like those 2 original gerbils.  Somehow when I bring a piece of paper into the house the next thing I know it has multiplied into 20!!!!  I'm not sure how it happens (I did finally figure out how it happened with the gerbils).  It does create all kinds of havoc - having all of those pieces of paper running all over the house!  Aack!  So my task, once again, will be to try to tackle these piling pieces of paper and hopefully figure out how they multiply so quickly!  I wonder if you can neuter a piece of paper?????
Today's Throwback Thursday features the Cool Cat stamp set!  I LOVE this adorable cat - so mod!  I have to say that I am a little unhappy that there really isn't a current cat or dog stamp set available from Stampin' Up!  I'm hoping one shows up soon...maybe in the next mini catalog?????  Let's hope so!  In the meantime, I'll use some of my throwbacks to meet my pet stamping needs :)  Here I just used simple ink, card stock and stamps...with three little rhinestones for the collar.  I hope you like it :)  I think it's just purrrrrfect :)

Out On A Whim Wednesday: Pumpkins & Paper Bags

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  You Just Need To Provide The Fertile Soil

Would you believe me if I told you we did not plant the pumpkin vine that you see taking over our yard in this photo?  Well, we didn't.  We did our usual when we prepared the bed for planting this year - spread our compost into the bed and covered the bed with straw and let it settle.  Then we planted tomatoes and peppers, some eggplant and a few beans.  And next thing we knew, a vine showed up from the dirt.  At first we thought it might be a zucchini, but then, as it grew, it looked less and less like a zucchini.  So, out of curiosity, we decided to let it keep growing...and grow it did!  Until it turned into the crazy pumpkin vine that is taking over our yard!  We have already picked one pumpkin from the vine and it looks like we will have at least 4 others.

We don't remember eating any pumpkins last year, so we aren't sure how the seeds ended up in our compost or our garden bed.  It's a great reminder for me though.  A reminder that you don't have to plant the seed - you just need to provide the fertile soil.  The same seems to be true about creating.  When you sit down to create, you don't need to come with an idea or a picture of what it is that you want to make.  You just need to sit down, surround yourself with your version of fertile soil - maybe that is a small space with a few art supplies; maybe a special candle that gets lit or a certain piece of music that soothes your creative muse.  Whatever it is, you just need to provide the fertile soil.  What is meant to then grow, will grow :)

 My friend and her husband and two little girls came for a visit last weekend.  Their daughters are 2 1/2 and 4 years old and I wanted to be sure to have a craft project for them to work on.  So I decided to sew together a few paper bags to create paper bag books for them to decorate.  I provided markers, stickers, fun foam pieces, glue and die cuts.  I even brought out the Big Shot and they LOVED turning the handle and making flowers appear :)  The older daughter even used the die cut "waste" as a stencil and colored in the flower shape with a marker.  It was so much fun to watch them create without any sense of judgement.  They absolutely inspired me! :)

Fine Feathers Sympathy Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Creation is a better means of self-expression than possession; it is through creating, not possessing, that life is revealed. - Vida Dutton Scudder, The Privilege of Age

 This quote was in the May 2012 issue of Real Simple magazine - something I was flipping through the other day (yes, I know it is already the end of July) :)  I haven't read Vida Dutton Scudder's book, so I am not sure the context in which this quote was stated.  Out of its original context the quote spoke to me.  As you know, I am always struggling with the issue of owning more "stuff" for my craft room and have found that purchasing more things can often be an excuse for not creating with the things that I have.  The truth is that when you really want to create you will do whatever you can with what you have.  I think about those who do not have the ability to go out and purchase a new craft/art supply and yet they release the need to express themselves with whatever they can find - scratching a rock against a surface, using a stick to draw in the sand, piling rocks one on top of the other to express that they stood in that very place.  Possessing things does say something about us...I'm not sure what it says about us is truly at the heart of who we are.  To tap into who we truly are at our core we need to explore our own gift of creativity...using whatever we have.
Today's card began with a desire to use a feather image from the Fine Feathers stamp set.  I stamped the image onto Very Vanilla cs and cut it out.  I then took a Baja Breeze card base and ran part of the front through the Big Shot with the Fancy Fan embossing folder.  Next I tore a piece of vellum and a piece of Sahara Sand cs and attached them to the card front with a bit of machine sewing.  I stamped the sentiment from Loving Thoughts in Basic Black and then added the feather with dimensionals.  Have a beautiful Tuesday :)

Papaya Collage Bits & Pieces Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Wait For It!

Michael and I have been wanting a new fountain for the backyard for awhile.  We have spent some time looking - mostly at garden stores.  We came close to buying one about a month ago.  We hemmed and hawed.  It was quite expensive and we just didn't love it like we felt we should for that price.  So we waited.  Well, over the weekend Michael went to the flea market and guess what he came home with???  Yes!  A beautiful metal fountain that is perfect for our backyard and....drumroll please....it was only $40!!!!  (although it would likely be about $200 new in the store).  Sometimes you just have to wait for it.  It will find its way to you in its own time :)  Here is a picture of the new fountain in its new home...the birds have already started visiting :)

Today's card began with the bird from Papaya Collage.  I stamped it with Soft Suede onto Very Vanilla card stock and cut it out.  Next I started gathering up bits and pieces from other card projects - a piece of embossed tissue tape, a dash of seam binding, a strip of scalloped edge.  I added a punched circle from Apothecary Art along with a button and hemp twine.  I love being able to gather up bits and pieces to create a fun collage card.  I hope you like it!