Monster Pains

April 22, 2011 ~ sproatmeyer ~ 8 Comments

Check out this newest release over at Little Miss Muffet Stamps! This is Monster Pains and boy, is he in some monster pains! I had so much fun drawing up this little guy and actually had to remove some bandages and bruises just to get a better look at him – after all, he’s in the recovery phase and walking around already!

I enjoy using these Kids Quotes stamps from Inkadinkadoo and this one was a great fit. This quote was credited to Alyssa Knight, Age 12.

I kept the embellishments minimal and as flat as possible so I could use it as a Get Well card. Those usually go out in two ways… either attached to a dinner or out in the mail. So just in case it would end up in the mail I stuck with the flat stuff.

On my latest shopping spree I ordered some felt and dies from My Favorite Things. I’ve enjoyed using the clouds so much that I had to pick up the sun too. I like using felt for the added texture and it kinda gives me that “warm” feeling that I hope the recipient gets too. ;D

I’d like to enter the following challenges:
Crafty Hos’ Recipe Challenge (one digi and one rubber stamp)
Creative Cowgirls (spring time and rainy days)
Paper Sundaes Challenge #65 (texture)
Cupcake Inspiration Challenge #107 (colors)
Paper Playtime Challenge #43 (weather)

DT: Little Miss Muffet Sneak Peeks
Main Stamp: Monster Pains (LMMS) and Count Your Rainbows (Inkadinkado)
Patterned Paper: Neighborhood (Crate Paper)
Metal Die: My Favorite Things Die-namics Clouds Trio and Sunshine

Copic Markers colored on Copy Paper:
-skin tone: E000, E00, E21, E11
-browns: E50, E53 E55
-reds: 0, R11, R12; R30, R32, R24, R29, R39
-oranges: YR12, YR14, YR18, R05
-yellows: Y32, Y35, Y26, YR20, YR21, YR12
-blues: B0000, B000, B00, B01, B02, BV31, BV23
-purples: BV31, BV32, BV35
-grays: C00, C1, C3

Did you know? Earth Day is a day that is intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s natural environment. Earth Day was founded by United States Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in first held on April 22, 1970. While this first Earth Day was focused on the United States, an organization launched by Denis Hayes, who was the original national coordinator in 1970, took it international in 1990 and organized events in 141 nations. Earth Day is now coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network, and is celebrated in more than 175 countries every year.
[Earth Day, Wikipedia.org]

Update: I made the Top 5 at Cupcake Inspirations for this challenge
and selected to be the next guest designer!

Update: I was the winner at Crafty Ho’s for this challenge!

Update: I made the Top 3 at Creative Cowgirls for this challenge!

Rosemary

April 21, 2011 ~ sproatmeyer ~ 10 Comments

Check out this cute new girl from the Sugar & Spice Dolls.. meet Rosemary! She was released today over at Little Miss Muffet Stamps along with two other girls plus a Monster in some mega-monster pains! 😀 Check them all out plus some more inspiration from the Design Team over at Little Miss Muffet Challenges !!

I kept the embellishments simple on this card… actually if you haven’t noticed, there’s nothing but paper this time around! LOL The papers I found had all that I was looking for and then I used a colored Uni Cycle I had left over from a previous project.

The sentiment is from a local craft store and I thought it went well with the postage card look. The label and orange start circle is from another paper from the same paper pack. I colored Rosemary using the same color pallet and tried out a new skin tone combo as well.

I’d like to enter the following challenges:
Crafty Cardmakers Challenge #44 (red, white, blue)
Karens Doodles Challenges (layers)
A Spoon Full of Sugar #148 (let’s celebrate)
StampFairy Challenge #19 (for the girls w/sentiment)
The Corrosive Challenge #112

(Home Sweet Home – postcards from home and a good book)

DT: Little Miss Muffet Challenges New Releases
Main Stamp: Rosemary (LMMS) and Uni Cycle (MiC)
Patterned Paper: Mod-Retro (DCWV)

Copic Markers colored on Copy Paper:
-skin tone: E000, E00, E01, E02, E11, R12
-hair: E08, E09, E18
-browns: E41, E42, E43
-reds: R22, R24, R27, R29, R59
-yellows: Y32, Y35
-greens: YG61, YG63, YG67
-blues: C1, C3, C5, B91, B93

Did you know? “What Are Little Boys Made Of?” is a popular nursery rhyme dating from the early nineteenth century. In the earliest known versions, the first ingredient for boys is either “snips” or “snigs”, the latter being a Cumbrian dialect word for a small eel. The rhyme sometimes appears as part of a larger work called “What Folks Are Made Of” or “What All the World Is Made Of”. Other stanzas describe what babies, young men, young women, sailors, soldiers, nurses, fathers, mothers, old men, old women, and all folks are made of.
[What Are Little Boys Made Of?, Wikipedia.org]

Steampunk Gang Grace

April 13, 2011 ~ sproatmeyer ~ 4 Comments

On this card I wanted to try out coloring large areas of fabric so I printed out this Simply Betty Stamps image extra large and went to town! It was perfect, she has a long skirt with plenty of folds to work with. I also took this opporunity to use some freebies that were generously sent my way. ;D

Here’s a close up of the skirt. I used the basic YG color range of YG91-YG99 and worked from the darkest color the lightest. Then I went back in and added some of the darker colors that were blended out.

Main Stamp: Steampunk Gang Grace (SBS)
Patterned Paper: Vintage (CM)
Metal Die: Spellbinders Nestabilities Eight

Copic Markers colored on Copy Paper:
-skin tone: E000, E00, E11, E13, R12, R14
-hair: E53, E55, E57, E59
-browns: E25, E27, E29
-creams: E50, E51, E53
-reds: R52, R35, R39
-oranges: Y32, Y38
-greens: YG91, YG93, YG95, YG97, YG99

Did you know? Puppetry is a form of theatre or performance which involves the manipulation of puppets. It is very ancient, and is believed to have originated 30,000 years BC. Puppetry takes many forms but they all share the process of animating inanimate performing objects. Puppetry is used in almost all human societies both as an entertainment – in performance – and ceremonially in rituals and celebrations such as carnivals.
[Puppetry, Wikipedia.org]

Opal Wishes

March 24, 2011 ~ sproatmeyer ~ 3 Comments

This is the second release today at Little Miss Muffet Stamps and she is called Opal Wishes. She is the “sister” to Butterfly Kisses. The inspiration came to me while watching a movie late one night and I had to pause it to quickly draw up the sketch. 😀 Hope you like her!

Challenge: Card Cupids Spring Time Challenge
Challenge: The Crafty Pad Challenge #113 (use digi)
Challenge: Sparkles Forum Challenge #7 (Mother’s day)
Challenge: The Corrosive Challenge #108 (3 papers, 2 ribbons [ribbon flowers and ribbon lace], 1 image)
Main Stamp: Opal Wishes (LMMS)
Patterned Paper: Stella and Rose Hattie (MME)
Chipboard: Frame Corner Flourishes (MiC)
Copic Markers:
E41, E42, E43, E44, E47, BG10, BG11, BG72, BG78, E0000, E000, E00, E11, E13, R11, R12, T2, T4, T6, T8, B91, B93, B95, B97, B99

Did you know? The Marathon Dam is a gravity dam on the Charadros River 28 mi (45 km) northeast of Athens in Greece. The dam created Lake Marathon for the primary purpose of municipal water supply. Constructed between 1926 and 1929, it was the sole supplier of water to Athens until 1959. The Marathon Dam is coated with the same Pentelikon marble used to construct the Parthenon and is symbolic of the Battle of Marathon.
[Marathon Dam, Wikipedia.org]

Lantern Rin

March 19, 2011 ~ sproatmeyer ~ 13 Comments

Today was my daughter’s first lesson coloring with Copic markers and she was so excited! Check out her card, also using Lantern Rin. She got to pick the challenge blog from a handful I showed her and was totally into the zone. It was fun and I’m sure the next lesson isn’t too far away. ;D

Challenge: Sparkle Creations Challenge #34 (photo inspiration)
Main Stamp: Lantern Rin (SCRS)
Patterned Paper: TC Blossomwood (K&C)
Chipboard: Frame Corner Flourishes (MiC)
Copic Markers

Did you know? The Power of Half is a book written by Kevin Salwen and his 14-year-old daughter Hannah in 2010. It describes how the Salwen family came to decide to sell its home, so that it could donate half the proceeds to charity. The family then bought a new home for itself, half the size. It also discusses what the family went through in selling its home, donating half the sales price, and down-grading to a smaller home, and what they learned in the process.
[The Power of Half, Wikipedia.org]

Lantern Rin by Cassandra

March 19, 2011 ~ sproatmeyer ~ 8 Comments

“I made this card for the picture challenge. The girl looks like she lives in China or Japan. I colored the girl with the colors pink, blue, brown, skin pink, and green. I add another stamp that says ‘You make me smile all over my face’ and I put two different colors behind it. And behind the girl I put flowers. I made this card with my Mommy. And I got a little leaf from my Mommy’s desk and painted it.” -by Cassandra (age 7)

Challenge: Sparkle Creations Challenge #34 (photo inspiration)
Main Stamp: Lantern Rin (SCRS)
Patterned Paper: scraps
Chipboard: Frame Corner Flourishes (MiC)
Copic Markers