Just Us Girls Challenge #703 - CAS Week - Use Just the Center of Your Card - Anita Jeram All is Bright Happy Holidays Kitty

Hello.

Welcome to Just Us Girls Challenge #703, where our lovely hostess, Nancy, has put the following spin on our CAS challenge for this week: Use Just the Center of your Card. Keeping your focal image in the center is sure to check all the boxes when it comes to a clean-and-simple design.  

Special thank you to Bonnie Klass for being our inspiring Guest Designer for October. You creativity is amazing; we absolutely loved having you play cards with us as part of the team.

I've brought the sweet little gazing-at-the-star kitten from the All is Bright stamp/die set from Colorado Craft Co./Anita Jeram. He's nestled on a die-cut snowflake; a favourite from Uniko Studio.

While the design inspiration came from Just Us Girls, my choice of image was inspired by this amazing challenge: The Cat Lovers Christmas Challenge: Remembering Janis Woolbright. I didn't have the opportunity to 'meet' Janis, but from what I've read about her during this month-long challenge, she was well-and-deeply loved by an abundance of friends, both two-legged and four-legged. She sounds like an incredible individual. Hopefully, my little kitten will make her 'star' shine a wee bit brighter - and bring a smile to the faces of those who adored her.

Looking forward to seeing your CAS creations in the gallery. 

Thank you for dropping by!

Inkspirational Challenge #301 - Word Prompt - Cold - Happy Holidays (Simon Hurley Winter Scene Card from Crop and Create 2023)

Hello,

Welcome to Inkspirational Challenge #301, where our Word Prompt for the next two weeks is COLD.

I'm sure that many of us in the Northern Hemisphere are experiencing cooler fall  temperatures. Here in Alberta, we have snow in the forecast! I'm so not ready for this! 

Remember: *cold* can be interpreted in different ways; for instance, cold beverages/food or a get well card for someone with a cold or a shift from cold to warm (warm mittens in winter). We'll leave you to decide how to 'tackle the cold'.

I recently 'attended' Crop & Create Fall 2023, where Simon Hurley was one of our instructors. Talk about a charming, talented young man!

My card is the result of his lesson that, in turn, features the products he shared with us:  stencils (tree range and snow), stamps + dies and some really cool Solar paste (shimmery snow). Now...I realize that polar bears and moose are unlikely to inhabit the same regions, so we'll just exercise creative license and 'imagine' that this is a south-traveling bear and a north-traveling moose who have met for a cold-weather Holiday meet up. Whatever the case, I think they're cool critters, indeed!

 

Looking forward to seeing how COLD inspires you!

Thank you for dropping by!

Just Us Girls Challenge #702 - Photo/Moodboard - Boo Pumpkins (Concord and 9th)

Hello,

Welcome to Just Us Girls Challenge #702, where our wonderful hostess, Ina, has selected this lovely Autumn/Fall mood board as this week's inspiration.

Larger image below:

We're delighted to have Bonnie Klass joining us as our October Guest Designer.

I wanted to create with something other than leaves (I know...weird to say given how much I LOVE leaves of late), so a little wander over to Concord & 9th offered inspiration from one of their designer's cards found here. 

Even though my card more-or-less cases the original design, it features the palette from the mood board. A quick run through with the Stitched Leaves card front die added some pretty background texture, along with being a 'nod' to the leaves in the photo. I'm pleased with my results; another card for the Halloween stash heading to my sister-in-law.

Looking forward to seeing how the Mood Board inspires you.

Thank you for dropping by!

Color Hues Challenge #74 - Yellow and Kraft - Artsy Leaves Grateful for You (Tim Holtz)

Hello,

Welcome to Color Hues Challenge #74, where Hannelie has paired Yellow and Kraft as our inspiration for the next two weeks. Talk about a pretty combination.

Playing with my Tim Holtz Artsy Leaves once again; totally smitten with them! The essence of my design was inspired by this card created by Barbara. Obviously, my colour choices differ from hers, as do my wood grain embossing folder background and sentiment. I added Fallen Acorn mica spray (painted it on, as my spraying abilities aren't up to par!) to my leaves' veins. Sparkly! Speaking of leaves: they've sporting an assortment of yellow distress inks - Mustard Seed, Squeezed Lemonade, Wild Honey. 

Looking forward to seeing how Yellow and Kraft inspire you.

The challenge will be open until October 28th @ 9 AM EST!

The winners will be posted an hour before our next challenge goes live.

The overall winner will have the opportunity to be a

future Guest Designer!

Thank you for dropping by!

Just Us Girls Challenge #701 - Word Week - PUMPKIN - Happy Halloween and Hey, Pumpkin Card and Tag (TE, MCT)

Hello,

Welcome to Just Us Girls Challenge #701, where Lisa E has selected *Pumpkin* as the theme for Word Week. 'Tis the season for pumpkins and pumpkin everything - from beverages to baked goods to home decor - and to card-making!

Once again, we're pleased to have October Guest Designer Bonnie Klass joining us.

Plenty of pumpkins/jack o'lanterns on my card, thanks to Taylored Expressions' Halloween Create-in-Quads stencil from last year. 

A second same-pattern panel made for a cute matchy-matchy tag. Hey, Pumpkin is from Simon Says Stamps; the Happy Halloween banner is from MCT (My Creative Time)

Looking forward to seeing a huge pumpkin patch in the gallery!

Thank you for dropping by!

HLS Anything Goes with Dies - October 2023 - Thankful for You - Stitched Pumpkin and Poshta Design Harvest Pumpkin, Acorn and Apple

Hello,

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all my Canadian friends!

Welcome to Happy Little Stampers October 2023 Anything Goes with Dies Challenge. 

Today, I'm sharing the Thanksgiving-themed packages I created for my niece and nephew - and everything uses dies! The cards feature the Lawn Fawn Embroidery Hoop dies. The patterns for the leaf and pumpkin were created by Chari Moss, who is a wonderfully talented card-maker and stitcher. Cute patterns and so easy to follow. I added a sprinkle of ink-blended die cut leaves and enamel dots to a leafy coverplate (from Concord & 9th) background. The sentiment banner is from MCT.

The felt pumpkins, apples and acorns are from Poshta Design. I love her products! Her dies and felt are *chef's kiss* amazing and stitching, especially with her designs, is so relaxing. The results are always a delight.

Looking forward to seeing how you'll highlight your dies! 

Thank you for dropping by!

Inkspirational Challenge #300 - Designer's Choice - Card plus Matching Envelope - Z-Fold Halloween Card and Envelope (MCT)

Hello,

Welcome to Inspirational Challenge #300 where, for my Designer's Choice, I invite you to create a *Card plus Matching Envelope*. Let's see your pretty ensembles, especially because envelope *art* is a thing!

 

New to my collection is the *Etched Z-Fold* card die from MCT and oh my stars! So much fun - and a great way to use up bits-and-pieces of patterned papers. I've made a couple of Halloween cards, one of which is featured below, using MCT papers and dies, along with a matchy-matchy envelope. The envelope is also from MCT; part of the "Cute Card" series (similar to mini slimlines).

The Z-Fold card is a challenge to photograph, but here's what the inside looks like. The back of the middle panel is also decorated with some pink gingham paper. 

Looking forward to seeing your Cards + Envelopes in the gallery.

Thank you for dropping by!

Just Us Girls Challenge #700 - Color Week - Orange, Light Blue, Tan - Hello Pumpkins (Concord and 9th)

Hello,

Welcome to Just Us Girls where we're celebrating our 700th challenge; a milestone that's taken the course of 14 (yes, fourteen!) years to reach! 'Tis a momentous occasion indeed! Lisa K, who has been on the team since its launch, invites us to play with Orange, Light Blue and Tan this week. Beautiful combination! 

We're delighted to have Bonnie Klass as our October Guest Designer. 

My card features the oh-so-wonderful pumpkins collection from Concord & 9th. Turnabout stamps to create the background; dies for the rest. The pumpkins make me smile! 

NEWSFLASH: To celebrate the 700th challenge, some of the design team members have surprise prizes on their blogs.  To win any of these prizes, we ask that you do the following: 

• play in this challenge, 
• leave a comment on the main Just Us Girls blog and
• leave a comment the blog of the design team member who is giving a prize.  

You may comment on as many of the DT blogs as you'd like.

Looking forward to seeing how Orange, Light Blue and Tan inspire you.

Thank you for dropping by!

HLS October 2023 Stencil Challenge - Anything Goes - Sending Hugs and Good Vibes (Waffle Flower Postage Collage)

Hello,

Welcome to Happy Little Stampers Stencil Challenge where the theme is Anything Goes. Let's see your stencils *shine*!

Waffle Flowers Postage Collection gets all the heart eyes from me. The stencils make for such pretty cards. Happy me with this one!

Looking forward to seeing which stencils will shine on your cards.

Thank you for dropping by!

HLS October 2023 Christmas Challenge - Anything Goes (Optional: Stencil) - Merry and Bright (Spellbinders)

Hello,

Welcome to Happy Little Stampers Christmas Challenge, where Anything Goes is always the theme, with an optional twist which, this month is *Stencil*.

No stenciling from me this time. In fact, I went completely opposite with die cuts only. This card, featuring Spellbinders products, was one created at the recent Crop & Create event. We made two more with our new goodies but - as always - I'm behind in my homework. Maybe next month...

Looking forward to see your Christmas cards in the gallery.

Thank you for dropping by!

HLS October 2023 - Birthday Challenge - Butterfly Birthday

Hello,

Welcome to Happy Little Stampers Birthday Challenge - for October already! - where the theme is always Anything Goes.

Yes, we may be well in Fall, but in my world, butterflies are always in season! 

What birthdays will you be celebrating this month? 

See you in the gallery.

Thank you for dropping by!

Color Hues Challenge #73 - Coral and Blue - Poinsettia Merry Christmas (Alex Syberia Festive Poinsettia)

Hello,

Welcome to Color Hues Challenge #73, where our fabulous Cindy invites us to use hues of Coral and Blue as our inspiration for the next two weeks. Beautiful combination!

We have three amazing guest designers joining us for this challenge: Fran, Trina and Jolanda. Guaranteed you'll be dazzled by their creativity. 

I finally invited some of Alex Syberia's products into my collection and OHMYSTARS! They are incredible - especially the Festive Poinsettia. To say I'm smitten would be an understatement. The stamps/stencils, as you can see, fill an entire card front, should you so desire. And desire I did! Coral and blue for this version...and an assortment of others in different combinations waiting in the wings. This set makes my stencil-loving heart VERY happy!

Looking forward to seeing your Coral and Blue creations in the gallery.

This challenge will be open until October 14th @ 9AM!

The winners will be posted an hour before our next challenge goes live.

The overall winner will have the opportunity to be a 

future Guest Designer!

Thank you for dropping by!