Friday, September 30, 2011

Challenge Reminder and meet our October Guest Designer


Hello and Happy Friday!  I meant to set up a reminder post on Wednesday, but life has not been cooperating with me regarding stamping time, so here I am on Friday with our reminder that Anne Marie's wonderful Sketch Challenge closes tonight at midnight (PST).  To find the linky, please click HERE.

We also need to send a BIG thank you to Sandra Conner for her wonderful work as our September Guest Designer.  We loved working with her and appreciated all of her hard work!  Thank you Sandra!

Tomorrow is October 1st and that means we have a new Guest Designer ready to join us!  Cindy Hall of Pretty Impact will be joining us and we are looking forward to having her on the team!  I asked Cindy to share a bit about herself!!


Hi! My name is Cindy Hall, and I live in beautiful Naples, Florida with my soul mate, Bryce. I began stamping over two years ago when my friend introduced me to a local ‘Stamp Camp’. When I left that afternoon, I realized that I hadn’t thought about anything stressful for over four hours, and I was hooked (it made for a good sell to my husband, too!). I am a full-time bookkeeper/office administrator. Paper crafting is my much-needed therapy. I joined Stampin’ Up! in March of this year, strictly as a hobby demonstrator. After learning more about the wonderful opportunities offered by Stampin’ Up! as a career demonstrator, I decided to start building my stamping business while doing something that I love: creating and sharing with friends. I love playing along with The Paper Players, and I’m so grateful and honored to be chosen as a Guest Designer. The wonderfully talented designers at The Paper Players have influenced and inspired me so much, and I only hope that I can pass it on.

Thank you Cindy!  We will be revealing our Headliner and the Cut Above choices tomorrow and then on Sunday, LeAnne is hosting a noteworthy theme challenge!

Thanks for stopping by!

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Challenge #65- Anne Marie's Sketch

Hello there fellow stampin' friends and welcome to another fun week at The Paper Players! Anne Marie here, as your hostess. This week, the Players have worked their creative magic on my sketch challenge and we sure hope you will join in the fun. Feel free to flip the sketch and/or change up any of the shapes to your liking. We can't wait to see what you do with it! 

I am also excited to share that our Sassy Substitute Stamper, Rita Wright (...or "Sassy-'Rita" as she has affectionatly been dubbed by the Players!)  is joining us again this week. Nance is on "creative hiatus" this week and Rita has graciously stepped in. Thanks, Rita!  So, without further delay, let's get to STAMPING! :) 

Although the Design Team uses Stampin' Up! products, we want you to feel free to use any brand you like. At The Paper Players, we are all about having fun!
Design Team Samples:
  1. Create a NEW project for this challenge.
  2. Be sure to link your blog with a direct link to the post you would like us to visit.
  3. Please put a link on your post to our challenge.
  4. Create a project with only 3 challenges including our challenge.
  5. Feel free to use any stamping products you have!



Saturday, September 24, 2011

Winners for Challenge #64 - Ann's CAS Theme


It is unbelievable how you continue to amaze us each week with your creativity!  A myriad of flora and fauna appeared on your clean and simple cards and projects...to the delight of this former science teacher!  Thank you so much for participating in what I am calling the "Back to Nature Challenge" and for supporting us at The Paper Players.  We really do appreciate you!  So what caught the eyes of the Design Team this week?  Check it out!

The Design Team's selections for A Cut Above

Nance’s choice: Nicole Patterson

  
There were so many wonderful creations this week but Nicole’s Aviary card really caught my eye.  Firstly, she used a clean and simple layout but punched it up with some adorable details!  I love the seam binding bow on the fussy-cut cage and her use of the large tree as a branch is genius!  I love all the escaped birdies and how the owl looks like he is plotting his escape!  Secondly, she incorporated both flora and fauna in her creation for maximum effect!  All these details put together made Nicole my choice for A Cut Above…congratulations Nicole!


Tara's Choice - Colleen Dietrich
I was drawn to Colleen's clean and crisp card right away. I love the simple, beautifully colored tree surrounded by the hand drawn lines.  An element of this card that I fancy ( and need to try) is the sentiment that is placed at the bottom of the card and is incorporated into the border - so clever!  My eye just naturally moves around the card - no layers, no accessories just a well designed, clean and simply beautiful card. Congratulations Colleen, for being my choice for Cut Above.

LeAnne's Choice - Regina Mangum


Regina's thoughtful sympathy card stood out to me with its simple monochromatic tones, yet the paper she used gave it a fresh updated look.  The beautiful bow and the torn edge with the gorgeous brocade paper peeking out at the top stepped it up another notch, making this card a real treasure!  Congratulations, Regina, for being my Cut Above!


Sandie's Choice - Julie E



This little pup is so cute, I just kept coming back to view this card and the second card that Julie made accompanying this little gem.  Both are very well done.  The pup here is paper pieced as is his kite and bows, and I just love that look.  Well done, this is just so cute!  Congrats Julie for two cards well done, you are my Cut Above this week!

Jaydee's Choice - Kim


I just loved this card and it just made me smile.  I loved the mixtures of textures and pattern and the way Kim tied the embossed layer to the focal point with pattern.  I also loved the play of scallops with the masculine pattern of the houndstooth.  The striped ribbon is fabulous and just brought the colors of the card together.  Absolutely spectacular.  Kim, congratulations on being my cut above this week, with this absolutely woofly, err.. I mean lovely... card :-)

Lesley's Choice- Susie Wittwer

What a fabulous week of submissions, I loved visiting your blogs to see the Clean and Simple designs you created with plants and animals.  Susie's card kept drawing my eye, I love that she used the "Flower Garden" embossing folder and highlighted the image with her Wisteria Wonder marker, how beautiful. The clean white paper, embossed and then highlighted, all perfectly tied together with a yellow ribbon was such a great way to create this clean and simple masterpiece! Congratulations Susie, on being my Cut Above this week.

Julie's Choice - Erica Shaw


Well girls, you all outdid yourselves this week!  There were so many fabulous submissions that it was really hard to choose just one.  I went digital this week and chose Erica's CAS layout created with MDS.  She kept the layout very simple using the cutest DSP and a few embellishments.  Esper, her daughter, is the real star here and the CAS layout allows her to be front and center.  Erica has a great tutorial on her blog on how to create this simple, but adorable page.  Her blog definitely provides lots of inspiration for those of us wanting to delve into the digital world of paper crafting.  Erica, congrats on being my Cut Above this week.  I love your work!

Anne Marie's Choice - Paula S. 


What a HOOT and super-cute! I just love Paula's adorable little get well duo and all of their fun details. I especially like the dimensional wings she added and the fun color combo. This little doctor and nurse will surely brighten anyone's day! Congratulations to you, Paula! You are my choice for A Cut Above this week with this fabulous feel-good card! 

And for our Headliner:

Ann's Choice - Cindy Hall



Nothing screams fall like beautiful foliage!  And with a thump from a sextet of Stampin' Write Markers,  Cindy Hall transformed the bare trees from Lovely as a Tree into specimens which are truly a delight to behold!  I love the two scenes she created, as well as the center sentiment.  The ribbon and buttons add texture, while the colors exude warmth.  Congratulations, Cindy, on being my choice for this week's Headliner!

Thanks to all of our participants this week.  We love seeing your projects and hope you'll join us tomorrow for a fabulous sketch challenge from Anne Marie!

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

There's Still Time to Play

It's not too late! There is still time to play in Ann's back-to-nature Clean and Simple Theme Challenge...Plants or Animals. Please click here to see the Design Team samples and the challenge.


Be sure to post your project to the linky by Friday, September 23rd at Midnight (PST).


We look forward to visiting your blog!

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Challenge 64-Ann's CAS Theme-Animals or Plants

It's back to nature this week at The Paper Players and our Clean and Simple Challenge doesn't get any easier! All we are asking is that you use an animal or a plant on your clean and simple card. Cats, dogs, trees, flowers, birds, butterflies, vines...flora or fauna...the choice is yours! So pull out your favorite plant or animal stamp and join the Players for another fun challenge.

Although the Design Team uses Stampin' Up! products, we want you to feel free to use any brand you like. At The Paper Players, we are all about having fun!

Let's see what the Design Team has created for you!


  1. Create a NEW project for this challenge.
  2. Be sure to link your blog with a direct link to the post you would like us to visit.
  3. Please put a link on your post to our challenge.
  4. Create a project with only 3 challenges including our challenge.
  5. Feel free to use any stamping products you have!

Be sure to post your project to the linky by Friday, September 23rd at Midnight (PST).

We look forward to visiting your blog!

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Winners for Challenge #63: Nance's Colors

Wow, y'all continue to amaze us each week with your creativity!  Thank you for participating in our color challenge and supporting us at The Paper Players...we so appreciate you!  Without further delay let's see what caught the eye of the Design Team this week:

For A Cut Above:
Tara's Choice: Crealotte


Again, I had such a tough time choosing my pick for this week's challenge given all the wonderful creativity. This week I chose a card by Crealotte. I really love the layout and cohesiveness of the sentiment, butterflies and overall layout. The faux stitching is just the perfect element to show off the  embossing on the butterfly wings. Such a pretty card that combines the colors of the challenge perfectly. Congratulations Crealotte for being my Cut Above this week!

LeAnne's Choice - Nancy Lempinen

I just loved the way that Nancy created her moon and then used a Dollar Store STICKER over top!  What a great find!  The DP she used is just perfect, too!  She placed her sentiment very creatively down in the corner and added little red bat eyes, too....oooooh, spooky!  A fun creative, yet non-fussy use of the colors that definitely scream Halloween!  Congrats, Nancy, on being my Cut Above!

Ann's Choice - Kathy Tanner

IMG_2438

Classy and elegant were two words which came to mind when I first saw Kathy's gorgeous card!  I love how she used the emboss resist technique with one of my favorite sets, French Foliage.  The Rich Razzleberry ink looks so soft and serene, while the En Francais background stamp is so elegant inked in Basic Gray.  Add a few waterspots and a tiny tag, and we have a card suitable for framing!  Congratulations, Kathy, for being my choice for A Cut Above!

Sandie's Choice: Narelle Farrugia


This card is CAS perfection.  Such a great layout, Narelle's use of our colors is fabulous.  I really like the outline flowers how she triple layered them up.  The whisper white striped background is the perfect matting for that pretty flower.  The basic pearls add just the right amount of shine to the edges and the center of the flower.  All this attention to detail adds up to one fabulous card, and that is why Narelle is my choice for being A Cut Above this week!  Congrats Narelle!

Lesley's Choice: Mindy Backes

What an adorable card Mindy created for this week's colour challenge! I love the spider web background and the images laid out in the sweet little circles.  I think I now "need" this Halloween Bingo stamp set!!  So cute! This card is clean and simple and SO much fun! The ribbon at the bottom highlights the images and centres the card perfectly! Congrats Mindy, on being my choice for Cut Above this week!

Julie's Choice - Michelle Bala


Michelle's card is the perfect example of choosing a few fabulous details to create a very elegant card.  The first thing you notice is that gorgeous flower.  It's many layers have been distressed with white ink that add the perfect softening touch. Those wonderful embossed lines?  They add just the right amount of balance.  These subtle added details are why I picked Michelle's card as my Cut Above this week.  Congratulations Michelle!

Rita's choice: Cindy Beach

I loved Cindy's card as soon as I saw it.  I've struggled to use the sets we received at Convention, but she paired two of them and created such a beautiful and elegant card.  The glimmer brads add a bit of bling and the pearls are a perfect finishing touch to her gorgeous wedding card.  Congratulations, Cindy!   You are my Cut Above for the week!  

Anne Marie's choice: Patti Corriere


I selected Patti's card this week because I really liked the way she showcased the color combo with so many fun accents. From the embossing, to the ribbon, to the creative way she layered the lace border punch...such a gorgeous card, in every way. The colored pearls finish it off beautifully, too. Congratulations, Patti on being my choice for A Cut Above this week! 

And for our Headliner:
Nance's choice: Jen W.
 
Jen’s clean and simple creation caught my eye as soon as I saw it in the gallery!  By featuring our challenge colors in blocks of color she really highlights how lovely they look together.  The debossed polka dot background adds such great texture and the fussy-cut typewriter is just fabulous.  My favorite creative detail, though, is how Jen lined up the alphabet stamps in typewriter order!!  Such a fun detail that sends Jen’s card straight to the Headlines for me!  Congratulations Jen!

Thanks to all of our participants this week.  We love seeing your projects and hope you'll join us tomorrow for a fun theme challenge from Ann!

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

There's Still Time to Play

It's not too late! There is still time to play in Nance's sassy Color Challenge. Please click here to see the Design Team samples and the challenge.


Be sure to post your project to the linky by Friday, September 16th at Midnight (PST).

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Challenge #63: A Color Challenge from Nance

Hi there stampers, Nance here, welcoming you to another week with The Paper Players!  One of my favorite aspects of design is COLOR!  I love fresh color combinations and looking at colors in a new way.  So, I am delighted to host a color challenge for you this week.  I am also excited to introduce you to our Sassy Substitute Stamper, Rita Wright!  Many of you know Rita from her work as a Guest Paper Player.  You will see Rita's fabulous work as she fills in for Design Team members on a break--this week she is stamping for Jaydee--thank you Rita!  Now, how 'bout that color challenge?


Although the Design Team uses Stampin' Up! products, we want you to feel free to use any brand you like. At The Paper Players, we are all about having fun!
 
Design Team Samples:

Julie MarshallAnn SchachSandra Conner

Anne Marie HileLeAnne Pugliese
Lesley CroghanNance LeedyTara Bilbao


Our Rules for Playing:
  1. Create a NEW project for this challenge.
  2. Be sure to link your blog with a direct link to the post you would like us to visit.
  3. Please put a link on your post to our challenge.
  4. Create a project with only 3 challenges including our challenge.
  5. Feel free to use any stamping products you have!
Be sure to post your project to the linky by Friday, September 16th at Midnight (PST).
We look forward to visiting your blog!