Some break!!

Ok, I know I said I'm going on a crafty break. But I just realized that there are some things you cannot impose on the mind. LOL. It refused to listen to me. I was trying my best to relax, watch a movie, read, cook and do something that isn't crafty; but well, as you can see, I am back. I did all of that but I also sat down to craft ;-) I'll have to postpone the break!!

Here is my take on this week's sketch at Card Patterns:

I am also submitting this for the inspiration challenge at Crafty JC taking nature as my inspiration.

Nothing much to write about actually. The flower (I love it) is made from a 1.5" wide grosgrain ribbon with a rolled up flower as the center; the charm is a local find; the paper rolls are inspired from somewhere on the internet (don't know where); the background stamp is my 'bee-hive' stamp; the ink is a very light green (sorry no fancy ink names to boast about); the sentiment is Stampin' Up!

That's a closer look at the flower.I loved the frayed edges and so did DH. :-)

And just before I leave, a look at my son's creative cupboard (I told you, he is my inspiration! :D):

He has more stickers on the inside too. Between us, we actually have all the stickers we see in our local markets :D And yeah, he sticks them all himself (he started collecting and sticking them when he was 1 year 2 months old or something.

Hugs,
Smita

Flashback Friday 3.0: First Challenge Card

Flashback Friday 3.0 is about the first challenge card you ever made! Well, I'm too embarassed to even share this :D but here is my first challenge card:

And this is what the post read like:

"My creation for Nikki's challenge.

I have used locally available material for this card. The cardstock used is light green tinted with gold. The patterned paper seen in this card is handmade dark green paper with golden block prints. I made the flowers using Carl craft floral punch and a leaf punch by Jef. The flowers were cupped using a manual embossing tool. I bought the ribbon from a local lace store. The sentiment is hand written. I painted ordinary white buttons golden to match the rest of the card."

This was July 2008. LOL!!! I got one comment for this post... and that too from a family friend :D

Ciao,

Smita

PS: I'm on a self imposed craft break for a while. I'll get back to crafting sooner than I think though, I guess!

Get Sketchy # 57

My take on this week's sketch at Get Sketchy:

This is another 75th birthday card requested by mom. The 3 double-loop layers on the edge look much prettier IRL. You'll need to take a closer look to see the floral print on the PP... it was impossible for me to photograph it.

Till later,

Smita
PS: I had to edit this card before sending it across. I added a large layered scalloped flower, leaves and some flourishes.

Where's the bling?

I love color challenges because they do the main part of thinking for me - what colors coordinate. But up till now, I couldn't participate in most, because I never had the right colors (read Patterned Papers LOL)with me. Now that I do have some options, I'm trying to combine fabulous color challenges with my favorite sketches.

When I love bright and warm colors so much, why wouldn't I play along with ColourQ :-) I was floored by their colours :-)

And I combined these gorgeous colors with this week's Card Patterns sketch:

And this is what I came up with:

This is card my mom requested for. She wanted a 50th birthday card for a relative. We decided not to have bling so I restricted my bling usage to 3 dots in Shimmer Apricot (3D outliner). I loved how it has turned out. I am not too sure if she'll like it though... she is difficult to please ;-) The stamps are Inkadinkado, papers are Pebbles Inc.

Ciao,
Smita

Beautiful...

Here is a card I loved making... and finally, Pa in law is also convinced I haven't lost my mind.. ;-)

The Patterned Paper is again a sheet from Itsy Bitsy (Pebbles Inc). I loved it so much I couldn't cut even a centimetre more ;-) 

I am submitting this card for PDCC 48:

I have been ogling at The Play Date Cafe blog for some time now, and promising myself to play every week. This time, the colors were so yummy, that I decided to play without wasting any time. Though, now that I look at it again, my colors don't seem to be perfect, but still...

Though the challenge could mean grey or silver, do you think I would not use silver?!?! I love my bling and use it wherever I can. These metallic flowers are gorgeous and I wonder why I didn't get more.

I'm also submitting this card for Cinema Saturday Creative Challenge #96 (use metal in your creations). No inspiration drawn from the movie directly though :-( The little handbag charm and the flower centers are all metal.

Hope you like it.

PS: And ohhh... did you see the stapling pins at work again? I was going to use a different color because I forgot that regular silver pins exist :-p Such is my obsession with colored staples these days!! I just can't have enough of these :-)

Hugs,

Smita

My cleanest card: 2S4Y

:-) Yes, this is , I think, the cleanest card I can manage ;-). My cards are never never CAS. It is based on the lovely sketch at my favorite sketch blog, 2 Sketches 4 You. 

My father-in-law gave me a weird look after seeing this card, and asked, 'Is this all? or are you going to add something more to it?'... Ha ha... Guess they are used to my going over the top with embellishments LOL. I used a gorgeous technique I learnt recently from the WOJ tutorial blog. All these scraps of PP are from one single sheet though :-) And I loved how the card turned out. PLUS I made it in record time - just 30 minutes ;-).

The ice-cream cone clip is a current favorite with me ;-) Check out my Girly Album and you'll know how I am currently crazy after these clips and colored stapling pins.

The Patterned Paper set was a gift from Donna (it is Heidi Grace). Everything else is from my stash.

I hope the 3D effect is visible in the pic :-/

Hugs,
Smita

A Girly Album

If you've been wondering why I am not posting, well,,, I am still around. I haven't had the time to breathe most of this last one week. But yes, over the past 2 weeks (yeah, that is a loooong long time) I did manage to complete a  little album that someone had asked me to make. The pics are dull and not nice, let me warn you... We've had a particularly gloomy day today.

This is a 9-page album that the lady wants to gift to her 9 year old niece. And the little girl loves butterflies, I was told. (Tejal, I hope that explains all the butterflies you'll see fluttering by in this post ;-) ).

I have provided secret and non-secret panels for messages ;-). And I have used tons of ribbon (I can't live without using ribbons) and my latest favorites - colored stapling pins - have found their way everywhere.

This looks like a particularly busy section though these were the easiest pages. I had a spring fold card ready and I just attached it here (on the left panel).

Juhi's gorgeous doily found its way here... And all that glaze (not at all clear in the pic) was a glue and glossed section. The wowie patterned paper here is from Itsy Bitsy. And that cute cute cute ice-cream cone paper clip is from a local stationery store. ;-)

Please do tell me that the silver doodling around the glitter heart is nice. The lady I made this for is my son's drawing teacher and I don't want her to laugh at my flowers and swirls ;-) She loved the ribbon weaving on my previous album, so I included it here as well.

Do tell me what you think, and please pardon the pics.

Ciao,

Smita

A lovely blog award

I received a loved blog award from Emily of Art♥from♥the♥Heart. I met her at her own blog a few months back and have been dropping by ever since. ;-) It was really sweet of her to pass on this award to me:

Now I need to pass this award on to SEVEN favorite blogs. A very tough task for me ;-) Pardon me if I can't list you here.... Each blog I visit is special to me. Anyway here are the 7 I would love to pass on this award to:

> Sankari
> Donna
> Juhi
> Tejal
> Spardha
> Shalini
> Sarita
> Yvonne 

Hugs,
Smita

Move it move it...

A 'card' that sure is close to my heart. My parents are having a housewarming puja for their new house tomorrow and I wanted to make a very very special card for them... I knew right from the beginning what that special something was. But since I had already had a few failed attempts with it in the past year, I was keeping my fingers crossed this time.

Isn't it cute? :-) I loved how it turned out (though I know I could do better with the embellishments). This is the main door and it can actually open and close, so I am submitting this project for the challenge at Quixotic Challenges - Move it, Move it. :-)

I did each window slightly different from the other. There are awnings on 2 windows because I know my parents used to love awnings :-)

Though she doesn't have too many, my mom used to have hundreds of pots in her garden when we lived in Kerala. (Please click to enlarge this image and then you'll know the buttons are flowers ;-) )

This is the back window of my little house. :-)

Hope you like it!!

Smita

Pretty pleased

...that is what I am with this new card. Mom called me up early this morning asking for a card to send to an uncle of hers on his 75th birthday. All was ok except for the fact that she wanted it couriered today itself!! Well well well... a  girl can't let her Mommy down, can she?? ;-) But I was quite a bundle of nerves and I thought I'd never start making it because I couldn't decide the paper or the color or anything for that matter.

Anyway, I will save the blah-blahing for some other time. Here's the card:

I so so love this patterned paper. It is called Patchwork and it is again from my newest stack. I have been so wanting to try popping a big flower. I know it sounds silly but I did want a PP with such large flowers and other elements that could be carved out and used separately :-) Hoping mom likes it too.

Ciao,
Smita

Some Odd Girl: Whoo-oo is i? Contest

Some Odd Girl has a super cool contest to name a cute little monkey. You could win a super cool prize too...

2S4Y: Laura's sketch 60

My take on the sketch at 2S4Y this week:

Again, nothing complicated. I have kept it really really simple because I wanted the flower to speak in this card. ;-) Don't you love it??? I am truly in love with shabby chic flowers and I love making my own flowers (don't have the patience for elaborate punch craft though).

The patterned paper is, of course, from my new stack - Linnie Bell (Party Time Girl series). I love all these double sided papers and it sure is difficult to choose the side... I used both sides of this particular sheet though ;-) For the flower, I used a shimmery sheet that dad got me months ago from Australia. And yeah, the staples... I'm loving these colored stapling pins that I bought recently. Wish I had got all colors though ;-)

Ciao,
Smita

Card Patterns 80

My card for the latest Card Patterns sketch:

I kept it very simple.... can't get cleaner than this for me {wink}. I am not too much a fan of brown but I am slowly growing to like them on cards once in a while. I won this stamp by The Stamp Shoppe a few months back. Inked it for the first time for this card and I quite like the clean lines.

I have been dying to have a large scallop border die and till I lay my hands on one of those, I thought I'd make do with semi circles. Not neat enough but serves my purpose. This time I omitted my usual faux stitching with dots. I kind of like the effect :-).

Another card I want to share with you today is something I made a month back... wonder how I forgot to post it though.

Again very very simple but I like it. Embossed using border embossing folders on the top and bottom. I went over the embossing with my trusted 3D outliner [I hoard on this thing... I have it in every color I like :D]. The highlight of this card, though, is the flower. I stamped on fabric for the first time. Love how the flower turned out... a little out of place, but it is ok. ;-)

Hope you liked the cards.

Wait wait wait... I need help/tips again. I am finding myself getting addicted to albums. But can someone please help me with binding options. I have binder rings now but I'd like to know more too. If I use rings, how do I go about the binding? I have been trying to read up online but am more confused than ever.

Smita

PS: I also got a new set of papers from Itsy Bitsy finally!! Not sharing a pic, because most of you (my fellow Indian crafters) already have them :-). My brother in law came down from Bangalore on Saturday, and with him came my papers *chuckle chuckle*.

Something new

***  This is my second post for today. Do scroll down to the next post and leave some love for my good friend, Sankari Wegman :-) ***

Something that I have been wanting to try for a while now is a full fledged book/album. I managed to create one finally... but as usual, managed to ruin it in the end! :-/ In fact, it almost got torn. Anyway, I was very happy with it till disaster struck, so I decided to share it anyway.

The bottom left page is the first page of the book. How do you think it has turned out? Any suggestion would be welcome.... especially ones on binding! {My favorite is the black, white and red one :-)}

I would like to thank a few people though... Tejal for the binding rings (girl, you are an angel!!!) AND Priya and Juhi for being such an inspiration :-) You guys are the original album pros :-)

Hugs,
Smita 

Happy Birthday Sankari

Today is a very special crafting friend's birthday. And we decided to give her a little birthday surprise by making and posting cards for her on our blogs... Sankari, sweetheart, you are the best :-) Happy birthday to you!!!

Sankari's style is almost inimitable.... her cards and all other projects are drop dead gorgeous. DH and I have been fans of her work for a long long time. She has also been one of my first blog buddies right from the days I started blogging :-) I do have a very special place in my heart for dear Sankari. Wish you a fantabulous year ahead, girl!

A little about my simple card:

I know she likes bright colors and a touch of Indian-ness never hurts ;-) I knew I wanted to make something in red for her but I am absolutely out of patterned paper. I wanted to use something Indian... so I used up some shimmery handmade paper and made the polka dots with household bleach. It now resembles bandhini or the 'tye and die' textile that India is so famous for. I made the pinwheel with a whee bit of coordinating patterned paper from scrap. The pretty pretty rose was a gift from Radha. The twine is again deep maroon and gold.

I hope you like the card, Sankari.

My card follows the Just Add Ink sketch.

Hugs,

Smita