Susie with Pie

~ sproatmeyer ~ 14 Comments

It’s the last challenge in January for The Stamping Bazaar and the challenge is a sketch which has many ways to interpret it. I chose to use Susie with Pie which rates among one of my favorites designed by Marina Neira. She is such a versatile stamp and can be used for many different occasions. So come on over and join the fun this week!


DT Challenge: The Stamping Bazaar Blog – Challenge #13 (sketch)
Challenge: Eat Sleep Stamp – Sketchy Thursday #115 (sketch)
Challenge: Mark’s Finest Papers – Challenge #39 (Sympathy)
Challenge: Simply Create – Challenge #35 (punches or dies)

Challenge: Wee Memories – Challenge #40 (Anything Goes)

Main Stamp: Susie with Pie (TSB)
Patterned Paper: Nana’s Kitchen (DCWV)
Metal Die: My Favorite Things Die-namics Notebook Edge
Copic Colors:
-susie: E2, E43, E44, E47, E49, E04
-pie: E53, E55, C3, R20, R21, R22, R24, R27, R29

Did you know? The Princess Bride is a 1973 fantasy novel written by William Goldman. It was originally published in the United States by Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. The book combines elements of comedy, adventure, fantasy, romance and fairy tale. It is presented as if it were an abridgment of a work by S. Morgenstern, and Goldman’s ‘commentary’ asides are constant throughout. It was made into a film of the same name in 1987 by Rob Reiner.
[Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.org]

Monster Sweet Tooth

~ sproatmeyer ~ 9 Comments

Here’s a card I made a while ago and was saving it for a “quick post” day. You know those kinds of days where you want to get something up quickly but didn’t have time to get anything else done? Yep, that’s one of these days! So here’s “Monster Sweet Tooth” munching on those giant lollies. I used a bold bright color scheme and tried to keep everything sans-swirls and flowers for a boy’s card.


Challenge: Allsorts – Challenge #87 (card for a boy)
Challenge: Alys Sunday Challenge #34 (for the guys)
Challenge: Anne’s Creative Nook – Challenge #121

(Not your usual Valentines card, but still has candy)

Challenge: One Stitch At A Time – Challenge #46

(“As You Like It” aka Anything Goes)

Main Stamp: Monster Sweet Tooth (LMMS)
Patterned Paper: (SU)
Metal Die: Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels Five
Copic Colors: (list unknown)

Did you know? Grandidier’s Baobab trees are the grandest and most famous of Madagascar’s six baobabs and is an endangered species in the genus Adansonia. These trees store water inside the swollen trunk (up to 120,000 litres / 32,000 US gallons) to endure the harsh drought conditions particular to each region. Some baobabs are reputed to be many thousands of years old, which is difficult to verify as the wood does not produce annual growth rings. This is the kind of tree that is shown in the movie Madagascar as the giant tree in the island’s centre. [Adansonia Grandidieri, Wikipedia.org]

Happy Little Gnome

~ sproatmeyer ~ 22 Comments

I can’t believe it’s mid-week already – I haven’t even started anything on my list for this week! Anyway, today I’m sharing a fun card which attempts to combine two different styles of images – Make it Crafty and Meljen’s Designs. I was happy with the way I colored the water until the sky was added as it was just a little too red for my liking. Finally, these chipboard embellishments were also covered with Liquid Pearls, then dragonflies and Dew Drops were added.


One of the challenges this week at Zoe’s Blog is to define a well used Australian Sang. For this post, I chose to define “Good Onya!” Get ready to believe it or not…

Good Onya [/gʊd/ /ˈʌnyə/] -interjection
An expression of surprise, shock or dismay; to encounter suddenly or unexpectedly; take or catch unawares; to surprise in such a manner as to disillusion.

Origin: Onya is a deity worshiped by the ancient Aussies and is the goddess of fate or destiny. She reveals her decrees by inhabiting the person briefly who then appears to be lifeless, apathetic, or totally lacking in independent judgment, and therefore is only able to declare her presence by the simple exclamation of “GOOD ONYA!” at which point, the Great Onya is forced to depart.


Challenge: Make it Crafty – Aussie Slang Interpretation
Challenge: Penny’s Paper-Crafty Challenge #45 (Anything Goes)
Challenge: AiFactory – Challenge #65 (For the boys)
Challenge: Creative Belli Blog – Challenge #109 (‘P’ is for … patterned paper)
Main Stamp: Happy Little Gnome (MD) & Sailing Leaf (MiC)
Patterned Paper: Green Stack (DCWV)
Chipboard Embellishments: Love Heart Swirls (MiC)
Metal Die: Spellbinders Nestabilities Hexagons
Copic Colors:
-skin: E000, E00, E11, R21, R22
-clothes: BG10, B52, BG72, BG18, R14, R17, R29, E41, E42, E43, E44
-leaf: G40, G82, G94, G99, E42, E43, E44
-water: 0, BG10, B52, BG72, BG18
-sky: 0, R02, R11, R12

Did you know? The population of the world is currently about 6,895,800,000 residing in over 220 countries and territories. In terms of percentage of each country’s population compared to the population of the world, the top ten are:

China (19.5%), India (17.3%), United States (4.52%), Indonesia (3.44%), Brazil (2.77%),
Pakistan (2.49%), Nigeria (2.29%), Bangladesh (2.17%), Russia (2.06%) and Japan (1.85%).

[List of Countries by Population, Wikipedia.org]

Birthday Bunny

~ sproatmeyer ~ 18 Comments

I made this card using Birthday Bunny, which was a freebie on my Mom’s site for a brief time, but is one of the images you can use in the current challenge! There’s only a week left to enter both the Blog Candy and challenge… and everyone has done an exceptional job spreading the word. Thank you all so much! We hope you’ve been enjoying the freebies that you’ve earned. ;D


Challenge: The Sweetest Thing – Challenge #101 (Sketch)
Challenge: The Crafty Pad – Challenge #105 (Something Girly)
Challenge: Woodware USA – Challenge #11 (Anything Goes)
Challenge: Stamps R Us – Challenge #13 (Animals)
Challenge: Paper Playtime – Challenge #35 (Party theme)
Challenge: Crafty Cardmakers – Challenge #38 (Flowers)
Challenge: Creative Inspirations – Challenge #51 (Celebrate)
Main Stamp: Birthday Bunny (LMMS)
Patterned Paper: Bloomin’ Blossoms Sunny Tearos (TPS)
Metal Die: Magnolia Doohickey Vintage Tag and Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels Four
Copic Colors:
Y32, Y35, Y38, R20, R21, R22, B91, B93, B95, YG0000, YG21, YG23, YG25, W1, W2, E40, E41, E42, E43, E44, E47

Did you know? A lighthouse keeper is the person responsible for tending and caring for a lighthouse, particularly the light and lens in the days when oil lamps and clockwork mechanisms were used. Keepers were needed to trim the wicks, replenish fuel, wind clockworks and perform maintenance tasks such as cleaning lenses and windows. Electrification and other automated improvements such as remote monitoring and automatic bulb changing made resident paid keepers residing at the lights unnecessary.
[Lighthouse Keeper, Wikipedia.org]

Pastry Girl

~ sproatmeyer ~ 19 Comments

It’s another challenge at Lollipop Crafts and we have something in store for you – the challenge is to create a card using a single layer! This will give you lots of opportunity to work on coloring and/or embellishments. I made my card using an embossing folder frame and stamped the Pastry Girl image inside.


The paper I used was Gina K’s Pure Luxury cardstock because I didn’t want the colors to bled through. It’s not my favorite paper to use but is a necessity with single layers. Here’s another try coloring the chipboard accents by Maya Road and this time I tried black Smooch Pearlized Accent Ink. I thought it would be more pearl-ized but they turned out flat and almost a medium gray. So I covered it all up with Sticklets which was a passable compromise.


DT Challenge: Lollipop Crafts – Challenge #23 (one layer)
Challenge: InStyle Stamps – Color Challenge (ISSCC01 colors below)
Challenge: For Fun Challenges (Glitter and sparkle)
Challenge: Little Red Wagon – Challenge #64 (one layer)
Challenge: Creative Belli Blog – Challenge #109 (P:”Pure Luxury CS”)
Main Stamp: Pastry Girl (ISS)
Dry Embossing: Cuttlebug Embossing Folders Herritage
Copic Colors:
-skin/hair: E000, E00, E11, E13, E25, E29
-clothes: YR20, YR21, YR23, YR24, W1, W2, W4, W6, W8
-other: E42, E44, E47, YG45, BG10, BG11, BG13, BG15, BG18, R20, R21, R22, B91, YR20, YR21, YR24

Did you know? The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for its mission set. It operates under the Department of Homeland Security during peacetime, and can be transferred to the Department of the Navy by the President or Congress during time of war. Founded on 4 August 1790, it lays claim to being the United States’ oldest continuous seagoing service. As of August 2009, the Coast Guard had approximately 42,000 men and women on active duty, 7,500 reservists, 29,000 auxiliarists, and 7,700 full-time civilian employees.
[United States Coast Guard, Wikipedia.org]

Update: Thank you Svetlana for your fun “I love your blog” award! 😀

Sweet Anya

~ sproatmeyer ~ 155 Comments

It’s another Mystery Monday at Club Anya & Friends and today it’s my turn to host! I chose to CASE a great card by Claudine Poch that featured a versatile layout for any occasion. This is also my last challenge as the January Guest Designer and I had so much fun being on the team! So with big HUGS, I say “Thanks TGF and Club Anya!!”


I made this card using an all time favorite Sweet Anya, of course. I also wanted to use some cork and thought it would be fun to cut it out using the lace doily die – it turned out better than I had hopped so I’ll be borrowing that die from my Mom again! 😀 If you’re keeping track of my details on painting the chipboards, I covered this wing embellishment with Liquid Pearls again. It appears to be my favorite method but I have yet to get my embossing powders out of the closet. As a final touch, I added glitter to a few areas of the clothing and white polka-dots on the shirt.

DT Challenge: Club Anya & Friends – Mystery Monday
Challenge: Stampin’ Royalty – Challenge #55 (things with wings)
Challenge: Creative Inspirations – Challenge #95 (patchwork)
Challenge: Color Throw Down – Challenge #125 (green, pink, kraft)
Challenge: Truly Scrumptious – Challenge #49 (pink, brown, green)
Challenge: Flutter By Wednesday (open + fairies and wing)
Main Stamp: Sweet Anya (TGF)
Patterned Paper: Once Upon a Springtime (Graphics 45) and Vintage (CM)
Metal Die: My Favorite Things Die-namics Decorative Doily
Copic Colors:
-skin: E000, E00, E11, E13, R12
-hair: E42, E43, E44, E47, E79
-clothes: YG91, TG93, YG95, YG97, R01, R02, R05, E50, E51, E53

Did you know? The Low Head Lighthouse is Australia’s oldest continuously used pilot station and was the third lighthouse to be constructed in Australia. The original tower, 15.25 meters (50.0 ft) high, was known as the “Georgetown Station” but by the 1880s, the original stone tower had fallen into a state of disrepair. It was demolished in 1888 and replaced with the present double brick structure with a new lantern room and apparatus. This light is now unmanned and automated.
[Low Head Lighthouse, Wikipedia.org]