Thank You and Birthday cards

First up is a different type of card than what I usually do. All black and white! This one is based on last Thursday's challenge at 365 cards. The challenge was to use a silhouette on your card, and the twist was that you could only use black and white. This was a hard one! I stamped one of my Mimi images (from DeNami Design) and just colored everything in with a black marker. I was quite pleased with the results! I then reached into my scraps and found a piece of black and white patterned paper from American Crafts. The sentiment is from Lawn Fawn. I stamped it with Versamark ink and then embossed it with white embossing powder. I thought it needed some "oomph", so I gave the girls a little bit of bling with Icicle Stickles.

I just love this next card, Peachy Birthday. This card was also made for the 365 card challenge blog. Last Wednesday's challenge was to "Keep It Simple" by only using one image, one sentiment, and one embellie. Another twist was that you could only use 1/3 of the card surface. Again, quite a struggle for me since I love embellies! I love the patterned paper cake layers, though-I think they are an embellishment in themselves. All of these papers are from an old DCWV stack-Nana's Nursery. The cake stamps are from Lawn fawn, and the sentiment is from imaginisce. The colors were inspired by Mona Pendleton's new challenge blog: CR84FN.

Finally, I have a birthday card for my Hero Arts friend, Marilyn. I missed her birthday the other day, but I still wanted to send her a pretty card. Plus, I owe her one! Marilyn sent me an adorable card last summer, so it's my turn. :) This card is based on Sketch #2 of sketch week by Lucy Abrams. I used another stamp (the dressform) from Lawn Fawn, and the same Imaginisce sentiment. I also embellished the tag a little bit with a Martha Stewart border punch. Making a dent in my stash, too-the red polka dot paper is AT LEAST 10 years old! It came in a Bitty Paper stack from Provo Craft which I got when I first started scrapbooking way back when. I loved the color and the print, though, so it never made it's way into the circular file. I love the combo of red and teal. They look great with the kraft and white, don't you think?

My Scrappy New Year's Goals

I have set a big goal for myself this year. Several scrappy friends have been talking about doing the popular Project 365 albums, where they take a picture each day and scrapbook it. At the end of 2011, they will have 365 photos. I'm not much of a scrapbooker, but I am a die-hard cardmaker. I also like to hoarde scrapping supplies. :) I am combining these two "talents" to create my own spin on Project 365. I am going to post a new project each day (usually a card, but sometimes a layout, tag, gift bag, etc.) My goal: to have completed 365 projects by the end of 2011. The twist: I am not allowing myself to buy ANY new scrappy supplies (other than adhesive) until I meet my goal. That's right-no new stamps, papers, punches, or ribbon. These are all major weaknesses for me! I am, however, continuing to design for Momenta (a VERY generous company that sends me monthly goody boxes) and I am also going to be entering many, many challenges in hopes of winning some new supplies. (Winning is very different from buying, lol!

(This card is out for PUBLICATION!)

I am sharing a few cards with you today. The first two are for this past week's 365 Cards Challenge. This is a new challenge site for me, but it will hopefully keep me both motivated and inspired this year. Monday's challenge was to pick 3 patterns from a list of choices. I chose houndtooth, paisley, and plaid. Since I am trying to use up my scraps, I punched hearts from each of these patterns (and I threw in a polka dot just because I liked it!) Then I stitched the hearts to my card front, scored the edges, and added a stamped sentiment and three tiny gems. Not a bit of adhesive on this card! This card is also based on Day 1 of Lucy's Sketch Challenge.

Tuesday's challenge was "Let's Make Some Noise!" The task: add something that makes noise to your card. I thought about this one for a long time. As I was looking through my stamp sets, I saw the VW bug stamp and the "Just Married" license plate. I thought it would be cute to tie some "cans" to the back of the car. I searched through my embellies, looking for silver beads for the "cans". What I found instead were these two album extenders which came in a package of page protectors. They jingle when you tip the card, making just a bit of noise. I thought it was a pretty creative idea. :)

The third and final card of the day is for my friend and fellow Momenta designer, Kelly Cranfill. She recently had a little girl, Braelyn Joy. Congratulations, Kelly! This card uses a premade card base and chipboard stickers from Momenta. I tried a new technique that I just saw in the new Scrapbooks Etc. magazine. I put masking tape on the back of plain white muslin, then embossed it with a Cuttlebug folder. It really works! It was the perfect touch for my card. This is also my entry for the Cardabilities Sketch Challenge #18.

Thanks for stopping by today! Please come back again tomorrow for some cute and easy "Thank You" cards and the rest of my 365 Cards Challenge entries. As always, I would love to have you leave me a comment-they keep me smiling and motivated!