"hitchhiker's guide" card

So I decided to enter a challenge/contest again.

This one is for: www.papersmoochesstamps.com >> 

The challenge was to use this layout draft on a card/project:

For this one, I wanted to use my orbit-looking Cuttlebug embossing folder.  Here's how it turned out:

Supplies:
Another simple card!  To get started, I embossed a piece of black cardstock with the coolio Cuttlebug embossing folder.  To color the embossed areas, I used Pebbles metallic cream chalks (what looks white is actually very sparkly silver).  I then adhered the embossed panel to a black card.  To color the rocket and rocket afterburn, I used Sharpie markers with Sakura metallic gel pens.  The last step was to stamp the quote on silver cardstock with some Sakura silver gel pen dots.  I added the chevron-shaped embellishment tabs last -- they are made by cutting out part of the design made by the tiny stars Cuttlebug embossing folder and adding some white ink & silver Pebbles chalk.

Stamps:
rocket, afterburn flames, quote -- Paper Smooches/
 

Thanks for taking a look! ~ Amanda B., the manderbean :)

"bat cave" card

So I decided to enter a challenge/contest again.

This one is for: www.papersmoochesstamps.com >> 

The challenge was to use this layout draft on a card/project:

Looking at this sketch, I started to think that it looked kind of like the entrance to a cave.  Here's how this card turned out:

Supplies:
I used a cereal bowl to trace the "fern" patterned paper -- I wanted it to give the feeling that there were vines and moss growing on the outside of the cave.  I paper pieced the bats onto brown cardstock, and added brown fuzzy flocking to their bodies.  I added two types of googly eyes, and used black Sharpie & colored pencil, white Sakura gel pen, and gray Sakura souffle pen to add detail to both bats. The branches were also paper-pieced onto brown cardstock, and the final touch was some green cardstock and stamping the sentiment, which I spliced together using two phrase stamps.

Stamps:
Bats, branches, sentiment - Paper Smooches/


Thanks for taking a look! ~ Amanda B., the manderbean :)

"minions go bananas" card

So I decided to enter a challenge/contest again.

This one is for: www.papersmoochesstamps.com >> 

The challenge was to use this layout draft on a card/project:

Before I show you this card, I need to give you some background.  When I got my space-themed stamp set, the alien in the little spaceship reminded me of this:

(picture courtesy of Google Images)

 Further inspiration for my card came from going to see the Disney movie Brave a couple weekends ago.  Here is the preview we saw for Despicable Me 2:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXl8T6S5QHs

If you're not familiar with the movie, or the Minions' love for bananas, here's another short video clip to catch you up:     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v49hHVEQFNY

I think that the Minions are hilarious.  ANYWAY, here's the card.  :)

Supplies:
I used a cereal bowl to trace the silver cardstock, then embossed it using the diamond plate Cuttlebug embossing folder to make it look like a factory wall.  I stamped the spaceship alien onto yellow cardstock, and went in and added googly eyes, goggle "frames" with Sakura silver gel pen, goggle "straps" with black Sharpie, and thread tufts for "hair".  I also stamped and cut out the tiny "gloved" hands from black cardstock with white ink.  I paper pieced the dome of the spaceship, as well as the "robo-arm" attachment.  For the saucer and engine/afterburn, I used Sharpie markers to color and added some blue, silver, and yellow glitter glue.  The bananas were also colored with Sharpie (and hung up with a wire hook made from a used guitar string).  The last step was to stamp and emboss the word "Bananas!" with yellow embossing powder and handwrite the rest of the sentiment with Sakura white gel pen.  Finally, I layered with foam dots to make it appear that the four minions on the bottom were peeking over the purple wall to watch, while the minion in the hovercraft was trying to retrieve the bunch of bananas (so there are actually three layers to this card, even though the scan doesn't show it very well).

Stamps:
Minions/(aliens), spaceship, rocket fire, extra hands, bananas/(moon), leaves -- Paper Smooches/
robot-arm --  My Cute Stamps/
"Bananas!" font -- American Crafts/


This card was super fun to design and create!!
Thanks for taking a look! ~ Amanda B., the manderbean :)

"stargazers" card

So I decided to enter a challenge/contest again.

This one is for: www.papersmoochesstamps.com >> 

The challenge was to use this layout draft on a card/project:

I had this card idea when I got my space-themed stamp set, and this layout sketch went right along with it (all I did was flip the sketch vertically --over the y-axis).  Here's how it turned out:

 

And this is the inside:

 

Awww!!  ;)

Supplies:
I used a cereal bowl to trace the moon on gray cardstock.  I both embossed and then flipped it over to deboss "craters" using the snow Cuttlebug embossing folder, then I applied blue ink.  The aliens, telescope, and planets were colored with Sharpie markers and cut out.  (For the moon, I traced the "dark side" outline in pencil so you can see that it's round.)  I stamped the stars on the background with white ink and then added Sakura white gel pen to make them stand out.  I added the tiniest bit of silver glitter glue to make some of  them "twinkle".  For the inside, I used a combination of word stickers and stamps, plus a glittery star sticker and dots of silver glitter glue. 

Stamps:
Aliens, telescope, planets, moon, stars, sentiment - Paper Smooches/

Thanks for taking a look! ~ Amanda B., the manderbean :)

"like peas and carrots" card

So I decided to enter another challenge/contest.

This one is for: www.papersmoochesstamps.com >> 

The challenge was to use this picture as inspiration:

I had another idea for my veggie stamps, and this is what came about:

Supplies:
Very simple!  The images were layered using kraft paper (which I colored with Crayola colored pencils and added Sharpie on top), some patterned paper (some paper piecing), and some plain colored cardstock (backing border).  (Other coloring supplies included white & green ink edging and my trusty Sakura white gel pen.)  As finishing touches, I used orange & green Studio G printed tape, twine, and rhinestones. 

Stamps:
Peas & Carrots - Paper Smooches/
Quote -- Lawn Fawn/

Thanks for taking a look! ~ Amanda B., the manderbean :)

"peas & love" card

So I decided to enter another challenge/contest.

This one is for: www.papersmoochesstamps.com >> 

The challenge was to use this picture as inspiration:

I remembered I had a flannel/mesh textured embossing folder, so I dug it out to create this:

I also wanted to use my veggie stamps for the idea of "fresh food".

Supplies:
I used red cardstock for the background -- after embossing with the mesh Paper Studio embossing folder, I sanded the raised areas to create a red and white grid.  I centered that on a piece of white cardstock.  For the images, I used combinations of patterned paper and plain colored cardstock to paper piece, as well as a few foam dots for dimension.  The dots on the hearts are done with Sakura white gel pen ink.

Stamps:
Peas, hearts, sunshine, smile, quote -- Paper Smooches/

Thanks for taking a look! ~ Amanda B., the manderbean :)

"cookin' monster" card

So I decided to enter another challenge/contest.
This one is for: www.papersmoochesstamps.com >> 

The challenge was to use this picture as inspiration:

I was wanting to do a kitchen-y just-for-fun-card.  Of course, I reached for the monster stamp...it seems to be giving me great ideas lately...

Here is the final result (kind of busy, but I think it's definitely fun) ~ I can almost smell fresh fruity muffins coming out of the oven:

 

Supplies:
I created the background kitchen scene with cardstock -- red for the wall, yellow for the floor, black for trim, & kraft for the tabletop.  I added the windows using blue cardstock, kraft trim, a small cloud punch, and red gingham patterned paper for "curtains".  The monster was cut out of lime green cardstock, and the bowl was cut out of teal.  Most of the coloring was done with Crayola colored pencils.  (A tiny bit of coloring was done with Sakura white and silver glitter gel pen, as well as a Bic fine-tip black permanent marker and black & brown ink.)  A lot of cutting, some red & white twine to trim the chef's hat, and some fringe cutting on red gingham paper to finish off a "placemat".  I am enjoying making scenes lately.  :)

Stamps:
Monster & monster's extra arm, chef's hat/(toast), mixing bowl/(mug), strawberry, milk carton, eggs, apple, "flour" and "sugar" canisters, wheat, twinkle, and leaf decorations, orange, steam/swirls -- Paper Smooches/
Oven/bun, muffins, tray/vase, coffee cup, lemon, heart decoration -- Lawn Fawn/
quote, spoon, flower decoration -- Bo Bunny/
tile floor pattern -- Prima/

Thanks for taking a look! ~ Amanda B., the manderbean :)

"cake conquerors" card

So I decided to enter another challenge/contest.  This one is for: www.papersmoochesstamps.com >> 


The challenge was to use this picture as inspiration:

 I admit, I was completely stumped for a day or two.  I thought that I would just use the color scheme.  And then it came to me, looking at the flag picks in the the cupcakes -- and I had this picture in my head:

(Pardon my rough sketch and my Kokopelli-looking climber.)

And then I had it -- a birthday card.  What better cupcake climber?  The monster, of course.  And he would be a "cake conqueror", claiming the birthday cupcake.  And just for a "punny" twist, I would include the phrase "take the cake!" somewhere on the card, as a kind of birthday battle cry.  ;)

Here is the final result (pretty great, if I do say so myself):

Supplies:
I created the background kitchen scene with cardstock -- turquoise "tile" embossed with the Cuttlebug Moroccan screen folder and color-flecked off white "Formica countertop".  I added the kraft paper "trim" to be the boundary between the countertop and the kitchen wall.  I cut the cupcake wrapper, yellow cake, and front layer of frosting by hand (free-form).  The cupcake wrapper was embossed with the Cuttlebug distressed stripes folder (I sent it through the machine again to soften the texture a bit).  The top of the cupcake paper was cut with Fiskars decorative scissors -- the pinking shears pattern.  The monsters were cut out of blue-green cardstock, and the flags were made from either red or patterned (red gingham, brown houndstooth) paper I had on hand.  A tiny bit of coloring was done with Sakura white and silver glitter gel pen, as well as a Bic fine-tip black permanent marker and black & brown ink.  A lot of cutting, some foam dots, some brown & white twine, yellow glitter glue, red ribbon, a Hobby Lobby circle punch, and a silver star brad top it off.  -- I think it tells the "cupcake conquerors" story pretty much as I envisioned it.  :)

Stamps:
Monster, banner shapes (small and large), flag poles, five-point- and twinkle-shaped stars, cloud (for "frosting" texture as well as secondary "frosting" layers), and second monster's extra arm (borrowed from the breakfast-themed set and trimmed to match) -- Paper Smooches/
larger font -- American Crafts/
smaller font ("HB2U") & tiny stars -- Making Memories/
sentiment ("take the cake!") -- Clear Dollar Stamps, LLC/

Thanks for taking a look! ~ Amanda B., the manderbean :)

"sunshine" card

This card design wasn't my idea at all {all the cards I've posted so far have been my own ideas} -- I "scraplifted" this one from a post on the Lawn Fawn stamp co. blog.  It looked so fun to make, I had to try it with the stamps I have!

Supplies:
I created the background scene with cardstock, embossing powder, and watermark ink (on the grass and trees).  A tiny bit of highlight coloring was done with either Bic/Sharpie fine-tip permanent markers or Sakura's "souffle" pens (much like heat embossing, those pens dry puffy and shiny, and work great for filling in any weak heat-embossed areas).  I decided to let the clouds and trees (okay, the tree was an afterthought after you look closely!) "leak" onto the kraft paper background.  More cutting and lots of foam dots to layer for dimension, plus a few glittery rhinestones up top -- and I think it turned out pretty well!

Stamps:
 Sun, bunnies, bird, trees, clouds, sentiment -- Lawn Fawn/
curlicues (as the "sunrays") -- Fiskars/
curlicues #2 (as the "grass") -- KI Memories/
chevron/zigzag (pattern on dark tree) -- American Crafts/
swiss dots (pattern on light tree) -- Studio G/
 *note: the "pattern" on the clouds is just how my blue Distress Ink beaded up on the stamp -- I think it's a neat effect.

Thanks for taking a look! ~ Amanda B., the manderbean :)

"down under" card

Opinion: Koalas are neat.  :)

Supplies:
I created the background scene with ink -- the clouds were done with my favorite cloud template from Crafter's Workshop.  I also cut and added inked kraft paper to the background to look like Ayers Rock in Australia.  Coloring was done with Crayola colored pencils.  A lot of cutting and a lot of foam dots -- and I am happy with the result!

Stamps:
Koala, trees, leaves -- Lawn Fawn/
tiny foliage and sun -- Clear Dollar Stamps (part of a scene-building set from that company)/

Thanks for taking a look! ~ Amanda B., the manderbean :)