Skipping Stones Design Farewell Blog Hop & Sketch Tuesday

Hey friends!  A while back Heather from Skipping Stones Design gave the DT members the option to stay or leave when our term was up this summer.  After mulling it over for several months and then having some things come up in my life I have decided that it is time for me to bid a fond farewell to the Skipping Stones Design Team.  I have thoroughly enjoyed being on the team and have had a blast sharing new stamps with all of you, too.  I have met some really neat and creative people on the DT and will miss them.  Thank goodness for Facebook, right?  So this will be my last official post as a Skipping Stones Design Team member.
Today we celebrate the release of two new stamp sets, ""Friendly Fruit" and "Timeless Textures" which I posted on yesterday’s blog post for a sneak preview.

If you just happened upon my blog today, you’ll want to go back to the beginning at Skipping Stones Design. You should have arrived from Kim Kesti’s blog.

Combined with the blog hop today, it's also Skipping Stones Sketch Tuesday which means the Design Team is showcasing another great sketch creation from Kim Kesti. We'd love for you to play along with the sketch. Just remember to use the keywords SSD035 if you are uploading to any online galleries or link your card at the Skipping Stones Blog. We'll be looking soon for Guest Designers and a DT call soon will be going out so you never know....

Here is today’s sketch from Kim Kesti:



Here is the card I made using SSD’s new set “Friendly Fruit”:




(Please excuse the bad photo.  I had a hard time again this evening trying to photograph this card.)
I had this fun idea to cut out a window with a Nestabilities Square die and emboss the frame around it.  It’s a little difficult to see in the first photo so here’s an up close snapshot:

 
The strawberry and some of the fruits on the patterned paper and the dots on the bottom patterned paper are blinged up with a glitter pen as is the Sweet in the sentiment. It truly sparkles in real life. I used some Kaisercraft rhinestones to adorn the corners of the frame and CTMH organdy ribbon to tie an accent on the main focal point.  The sentiment and strawberry (which was stamped using paper masks) are stamped using CTMH inks.  Papers are Basic Grey’s Nook & Pantry. (Yum, Yum!)



Thanks for stopping by and checking out today’s Skipping Stones Design sketch.  I hope you have a fabulous trip on this blog hop!

~ Inky Smiles

PS.  Your next stop is the fabulatastic Peggy Russell who never ceases to amaze me with her beautiful cards and stitching.

Skipping Stones Design http://www.skippingstonesdesign.com/
Kim Kesti http://www.kimberlykesti.typepad.com/
Erin Grotegut http://www.inkysmiles.blogspot.com/
Peggy Russell http://www.beautifulgreetings.blogspot.com/
Kandi Phillips http://www.kraftykandikrafts.blogspot.com/
Dina Kowal http://mamadinis.blogspot.com/
Michelle Giraud http://www.twisted-chick.blogspot.com/
Jennifer Ingle http://www.justjingle.blogspot.com/
Heidi Van Laar  http://www.vanlaardesigns.blogspot.com/
Amanda Sewell http://www.inkspirations.blogspot.com/
Chelsea Van Wyk http://www.scraptasticvoyage.blogspot.com
Angela Thomas http://www.sparkleandbling.blogspot.com

Don’t forget to stop and share the love for the other DT girls’ creations!

Skipping Stones Design Sketch Tuesday: Blog Hop & SSD031 “Fall In Chocolate”

Last week I gave you a sneak peek at the Fangs or Fur stamp set and today we are celebrating the official release of the two new stamp sets, "Fangs or Fur" and “Chocolate Vol. 2”.  This is our "sweetest" release yet, whether you're a Twilight fan or a chocolate lover, we have something for you!!  

If you just happened upon my blog today, you’ll want to go back to the beginning at Skipping Stones Design. You should have arrived from Teri Anderson’s blog.

Combined with the blog hop today, it's also Skipping Stones Sketch Tuesday which means the Design Team is showcasing another great creation from Teri Anderson.

Here’s Teri’s sketch for today:

This sketch was perfect for BOTH sets of stamps and I had a blast playing with it but ultimately I decided to go with something chocolatey this week.  Yum, yum, yum….

Introducing Chocolate Volume 2 from Skipping Stones Design:

And a little treat made with this delightful stamp set! Who can resist chocolate covered strawberries on a sweet summer day?  Not me, that’s for sure!  Here’s my card:

I had a brand new 6x6 pack of Basic Grey Nook and Pantry paper staring at me from the back of my desk and decided it would be PERFECT for a sweet tooth card.  So off I went a layering and a stitching. Peggy Russell gave me some advice on threads and I switched to a shinier, prettier thread (this one is a lemony Coast and Clark) and it has made the difference in my stitching love.. lol!  Thanks Peggy!  My poor Bernina got a workout on this card!

Here’s a close up of the stitching and new thread:

It’s hard to tell in the main photo, but I did sponge a little chocolate love around the circle that the strawberries are on to add texture and dimension and not have it be quite so stark white.  

I created the “index/recipe” card in Photoshop and handwrote an entire recipe for Chocolate Covered Strawberries because I wasn’t sure what would end up showing… lol…. well, if you pry up the top layers you would find an almost full recipe underneath, hehe!  I did cut off the bottom 1/3 of it.

We'd love for you to play along with the sketch. Just remember to use the keywords SSD031 if you are uploading to any online galleries or link your card at the Skipping Stones Blog. We're always on the lookout for  Guest Designers so you never know....

Thanks so much for visiting me today.  Your next stop is the wonderfully talented Peggy Russell.

~Inky Chocolatey Smiles!

Oh, and PS – since you’ve followed along this far… how about a little something SWEET?    I have a package of Chic Martini stamps from Skipping Stones Design to give away to one lucky winner!  Just leave a comment on this post and I will draw a winner on Monday, July 12th using a random number generator.

 

Here’s the Hop Order in case you reach a broken link along the way.  {Please note that while some artists may have their posts up already, the hop doesn’t officially start until 10 am EST.}

Skipping Stones Design http://skippingstonesdesign.com/
Teri Anderson http://terisplace.wordpress.com/
Erin Grotegut http://inkysmiles.blogspot.com/
Peggy Russell http://beautifulgreetings.blogspot.com/
Kandi Phillips http://kraftykandikrafts.blogspot.com/
*SPECIAL GUEST*  Jodi Collins http://stampingalatte.blogspot.com/
Michelle Giraud http://twisted-chick.blogspot.com/
Jennifer Ingle http://justjingle.blogspot.com/
Amanda Sewell http://www.inkspirations.blogspot.com/
Chelsea Van Wyk http://www.scraptasticvoyage.blogspot.com/
Angela Thomas http://sparkleandbling.blogspot.com/

Skipping Stones Sketch Tuesday & Blog Hop : SSD025 – Holy Carp!

Welcome to Skipping Stones Design’s Blog  Design Team Blog Hop!! I’m so glad to “see” you here today!   Today we are celebrating the release of two new stamp  sets, Holy Carp and Home of the Brave.  If you just happened upon my blog today, you’ll want to go back to the beginning at Skipping Stones Design. You should have arrived from Jen del Muro’s blog. 

Combined with the blog hop today, it's also Skipping Stones Sketch Tuesday which means the Design Team is showcasing another great creation from Jen del Muro. We'd love for you to play along with the sketch. Just remember to use the keywords SSD025 if you are uploading to any online galleries or link your card at the Skipping Stones Blog.  We LOVE having guest designers so come on and participate… you never know when you might be asked to play…

Today we have a SUPER DUPER FUN sketch from Jen del Muro.  I’ve been excited to play with this sketch since we got the sketches last month.  I just needed the “right” stamp set and boy did I get the right set with this month’s releases!  When I opened my envelope of treasures I was so stoked to find the Holy Carp set.  Now if you will please excuse the potty humor…

Who could resist playing with and blogging about a stamp set called Holy Carp right after a toilet paper technique tutorial?”

LOLOLOL… Ok… ‘nuff with that. Just keep stamping, just keep stamping…

Here’s today’s fabulous sketch.

I pretty much followed the rules today and stuck to the sketch… EXCEPT…

I had to jiggle the sketch so that the “star” scooted over to the other side of the card cuz it just wasn’t cooperating with the image and embellishments I was using.   (But I think you’ll still like the card… keep reading…)

Here’s my card:

I just HAD to move the “star” accent over to the side because it kept interfering with that really cool boat and I would have had to make a GINORMOUS card to make it fit over there… as it is this card is 5 x 5.5”

Here’s the inside:

So anyway… this set was so fun to play with…   I have just the person in mind to receive it a little later this summer… My dad is turning 60 and he’s loved fishing for many years.. I think he’ll get a kick out of the card. :)

Here are a couple detail shots:

This card needed some bling and sparkle, but since it’s for someone of the dude variety I had to keep the sparkly bling in check… HOWEVER, that being said, I couldn’t resist blinging up that big ol’ cheeser…  It sparkles nicely in “real life”…

TIP:  Hey – did you know if your die cut for matting an image is a little too big and you don’t have an “in between size” you can zip it through your Cuttlebug and the embossing will slightly “shrink” up your mat… voila!  Now it fits mo bettah!

Creative Supplies:
Stamps – Skipping Stones Design’s Holy Carp
Inks – CTMH Black & Desert Sand
Papers – Misc from my scrap stash, Kraft CS, Gina K White CS
Miscellaneous – Cuttlebug and folder, Spellbinders dies, misc brads (inked with brown Stazon), misc ribbon, jewelry tag, AC Foam Tabs, watercolor pencils (SU & CTMH), odorless mineral spirits & paper stick, Sakura clear glitter pen, ATG adhesive.

 

Your next stop is the awesome Kandi Phillips… go on… swim on over and leave her some love!

Inky Smiles!

PS… Coming up later this week here at Inky Smiles I will be posting about a new round of Scrap My Scraps for June for 6 players!  Stay tuned!

 

Blog Hop Order (just in case):
Skipping Stones Design http://skippingstonesdesign.com
Jen del Muro http://iheart2stamp.com
Erin Grotegut http://www.inkysmiles.blogspot.com
Kandi Phillips http://kraftykandikrafts.blogspot.com
Deb Felts http://withastampandasong.blogspot.com
Peggy Russell http://beautifulgreetings.blogspot.com
Michelle Giraud http://twisted-chick.blogspot.com
Jennifer Ingle http://justjingle.blogspot.com
Amanda Sewell http://www.inkspirations.blogspot.com
Angela Thomas http://sparkleandbling.blogspot.com

Skipping Stones Design Sketch Tuesday: Blog Hop, A Little Candy & SSD020

Happy Tuesday, blogging friends!

Welcome to Skipping Stones Design’s Blog  DT  Blog Hop to celebrate the release of two new stamp  sets, Birthday Donuts and Whispering Wings.  If you just happened upon my blog today, you’ll want to go back to the beginning at Skipping Stones Design. You should have arrived from Kimberly Crawford’s blog. 

Combined with the blog hop today, it's also Skipping Stones Sketch Tuesday which means the Design Team is showcasing another great creation from Kimberly Crawford. We'd love for you to play along with the sketch. Just remember to use the keywords SSD020 if you are uploading to any online galleries or link your card at the Skipping Stones Blog. We'll be looking soon for Guest Designers so you never know....

Here’s this week’s sketch, SSD020:

I flipped it and rotated it in PSE….

I had all sorts of ideas for this sketch, but I had to reel it in a little due to time and pain tolerance constraints (but that’s a another story) so I sat down after dinner and played around with the  Birthday Donuts set and some sample papers from Sassafrass Lass.

I really wanted to use the Birthday Donuts for this card, but I didn’t want to color another card for a few reasons:  1) I don’t have the “right colors” in watercolor pencils 2) I don’t have a watercolor penbrush thingy to use my brown ink pads, 3) I have just one brown Copic, and 4) I didn’t want to color. LOL!

SOOOOOOO… I decided to play around with some paper piecing using my favorite donut stamp from the set.

Here’s what I came up with.

And here’s the same image very roughly edited with a different background, thanks to PSE… It’s fun to see how different colored backgrounds change how a piece appears.

 
Anyway… back to today’s bidniss… Since one of my favorite type of donut is a “cake” donut I decided to make the donut out of a chocolatey brown felt and then frost it with some delightful pink frosting.  I stamped the image onto some scrap cardstock and cut it apart, using the pieces as templates for my donut and frosting.  The candles are stamped direct to some scrap Sassafrass Lass paper and then lit up with some Crystal Effects and yellow glitter.

  
I just wanted a chunky, funky card this time so I layered up chunks fo my fav paper pieces from Sassafrass Lass’ newest release, some pink tulle, an itty bitty zipper I’ve had for ages and never knew what to do with and a big tag made from some SL paper.  I like to think the zipper is keeping the secret of how many birthdays and donuts I’ve really had. *wink*

And even though I don’t usually decorate the inside of cards I thought this one needed it so I layered up some SL papers and stamped a sentiment.

Thank you for stopping by today! I hope you had a pleasant visit!  Please continue on this hop by visiting Kandi Phillips’ blog next!

PS… I’ve got some candy to share today!  Heather sent me a brand new copy of Funny Coffee Vol I to share with some lucky winner this week.  Here’s how you can win:

* What is your favorite “secret” treat?   Leave a comment on this post and tell me and I will draw a winner on Friday, April 16th. 

Inky Smiles!

Sweet Supplies:
Stamps:  Skipping Stones Design Birthday Donuts
Ink:  CTMH Ocean, Hollyhock, misc yellow chalk ink
Paper:  Various scraps of Sassafrass Lass new release pieces
Misc:  Doodlebug glitter, Crystal Effects, Homemade Glimmer Mist, Zipper, Adhesive, Tulle, AC Foam Tabs, misc Archivers CS, thread, Bernie the Bernina.

Special Announcement: Hop(e) for Haiti Blog Hop

A little bit of special digi art for a cause I am excited for:

On Tuesday, February 16th, 2010 we will launch a very special blog hop...

During Hop(e) for Haiti we can all work together to help raise money. The money will be donated to the Red Cross to help those still struggling to get basic needs met after surviving the devastating January earthquake in Haiti.

On February 16th we will start our blog hop at Skipping Stones Design and visit the blogs of our Stamp Tramps Design Team and MANY specially invited guest bloggers. You are in for a treat with our special guests!

During the week following Feb 16th you will have a chance at winning fabulous prizes including pre-released stamp sets, as well as bidding on some of your favorite artists' work on our special Ebay auctions. (Links will be provided.)

100% of the proceeds of the Ebay auction and $2.00 from every stamp set purchased from February 16 - 22 will be donated to the Red Cross. Please check back at Skipping Stones Design for updates.

I hope to see you hopping along with us next week!

~Inky Smiles!