Play Date Cafe Challenge #155

Well I hope everyone had lots of fun last week with our big 3rd anniversary celebration!  I just love the soft colors this week, such a contrast from the bold and dark colors last week (I loved those too, though):

 And here is the tag I made:

Sometimes, I have problems with the composition of a tag--I am used to working on a much larger scale--but I love how this turned out! What I don't like is that my distressing ended up a bit splotchy. But, overall I like it.

Supplies: Stamps provided by Technique Tuesday, our sponsor for this challenge; die cuts from Tim Holtz sizzix dies (tattered flowers and gears); ruler trim by Tim Holtz; Ranger Distress ink in Old Photo; Ranger Distress Stain in Picket Fence; plus generic gesso, acrylic paint, button, flower, ribbon etc.

And as mentioned, here is our great sponsor for the week:

 Also this week, we say goodbye to a longtime team member, Ruby McGuire. We are very sad to see her go :(  She will be missed!

And finally, we are happy to have Teri Anderson of Technique Tuesday with us this week as a guest designer!

Make sure to check out The Play Date Cafe blog for complete prize and rules information!

Play Date Cafe Challenge #154 and 3rd Anniversary Celebration!

The Play Date Cafe Challenge Blog is 3 years old this week! Wow! And in honor of the anniversary, there will be lots of giveaways and fun!

Here's a look at the bold color story:

And my project, an 8x10 canvas:

I love how it turned out!  (As usual, I used a bunch of paints and sprays, including some brand new sprays from Heidi Swapp. The houndsooth paper is actually tissue paper that was used to wrap my order from the Paper Issues etsy store. The typewriter key stamp is from Stampin Up.)


So, you will want to check out The Play Date Cafe blog every day during Oct 18-22, as there will be new inspiration and PRIZES daily!

Our blog is getting a makeover, too, and here is a look at the new badge style!

 

 Ways to get a chance at winning one of our many prizes:

-participate in the weekly challenge, and make a project of your choice using the color story

-Like PDCC on Facebook

- Follow PDCC on twitter

-post the "I Play" badge for anyone who loves PDCC on your  blog and link back to The Play Date Cafe

-and make sure you are following the blog through google. We are close to 2,000 followers and we would love to hit 2k just in time for our big celebration :)

Play Date Cafe Challenge #153

Wow, this week seemed like a whirlwind! We had visitors over the weekend, which was great fun, but now I am worn out!

Here is the lovely color story for the week:

 And our always amazing sponsor, Simon Says Stamp!

So this week, I was in the mood to make a true "She Art" girl because I  haven't for awhile. I think I am out of practice! She ended up cute, but it took several tries and lots of gesso to cover up some mistakes! :)

Here she is:

It's a little hard to see in the photos, but just to the left of her skirt, you can see a doily. This doily was one that was owned by my grandmother who died before I knew her. But she was into crafts and left behind a cache of neat things, including lots of packs of paper doilies.

By nature, I want to save and hoard things and was slightly reluctant to use up any of her supplies. But I realized that she would probably want things used in projects rather than disintegrate or get thrown away years down the road or whatever. I know I got some of my talent and interests from her (and my other also artsy grandmother!) and the best way I know how to honor her is to incorporate some of her supplies into my own work.

Anyways, I hope you're having a great week and enjoying the fall weather if it is getting cooler where you live (it sure is here! pulled out the jacket for the first time this season!). Make sure to stop by The Play Date Cafe for complete rules and prize information!

Play Date Cafe Challenge #152

Purple is my favorite color, so I was really excited about The Play Date Cafe challenge this week! I had just seen a tutorial from Christy Tomlinson (who else?!) and she used something called Tar Gel to add glossy texture to some Halloween-themed pieces. I didn't really want to go out and buy another supply, but I did have a big bottle of Gloss Gel Medium that I rarely use.I covered the whole background with it.

The downside? It doesn't really photograph well, since it is so shiny and reflects a lot of light. I swear that this page looks much better in person! It even has a coat of purple Perfect Pearls mist that shimmers nicely in the light.

 

The quote is from The Spanish Gypsy by George Eliot.

Anyways, I had fun making this, but working with a black background is hard! I kept wanting to use some purple ink spray, but then I realized that it wouldn't show up.

Thanks for stopping by, and be sure to check out The Play Date Cafe for complete challenge and prize information! This week we our sponsor is Freckled Fawn. 

I really wish I could win, because I am ashamed to say that I don't own any Washi tape! I really, really want some though, I can just never find it in any stores :( I guess I will need to order some!

Oh, and one more thing, we want to welcome the VERY talented Rachel of RW Krafts to the Play Date Cafe Design Team!

Paper Haus Sketch!

I want to share with you the layout I made with the great sketch over at The PaperHaus:

 

For this layout, I used On Cloud Nine and Ticket to the Sky by Captivated Visions. (they will be available soon at Scrapbookgraphics)

I have been keeping busy lately with lots of inspiration from Christy Tomlinson, and I have even gone back to an older workshop of hers, She Art 2, and here are a few of my girls with faces:

 

I was really scared to draw faces, as  I've never been good at it, but I am getting better! Christy has so many great techniques, and she's all about just getting started, getting messy, and trying new things, so that really appeals to me. 

I'll be back on Thursday with a brand new color story from The Play Date Cafe!