August Swaps

August was another productive month for me.  In addition to the Christmas cards previously posted, I also completed a bunch of swaps for the ATC group I belong to.  Without further ado, here they are.

Mystery Image, which was a moose - Yep, decades after the unique TV show concluded, I still can't see a moose without thinking of Northern Exposure!  The background I used is a printer copy of a painting I found online. 

Sketch Card #1 - We decided to try something new and work with a sketch every month.  Sketches are quite popular in the cardmaking and scrapbooking venues, but I've never seen this done for ATCs.  The top image is our starting sketch, and the four below are the cards I came up with using the idea.  I was surprised at how fast and how fun this swap was!

Quote of the Month - I used a quote from a Stampin' Up! set along with some SU! washi tape.  Easy peasy!

Artist's Choice - The photo just does not do this card justice.  I fussy cut the heat embossed flower into several layers and added some leaves that weren't in the original image.  The card base was dry embossed with a SU! embossing folder and then randomly painted with Gelatos.

Just Beachy - Of all the ATC series I've made so far, this is my favorite.  I love the collage effect and the colors I chose, and the focus is on the real sea oats I acquired a few years ago while visiting some friends in North Carolina.

Winner Take All - The winner this month chose the theme Trees, so it was a perfect excuse to pull out my Lovely as a Tree Stampin' Up! set... well, if I could have found it quickly.  Instead, I chose to use the Lovely as a Tree stamp brushes in My Digital Studio to create this card in Early Espresso and Bashful Blue.  I printed it out and used Stickles to make the trees shimmer.  This is another card that looks much better in real life than in the photo.

A2 Birthday Card - Just for fun, we decided to do a non-ATC swap, and this month it was an A2 sized birthday card.  This was my first time using the Circle Card Thinlit from Stampin' Up!, and I had fun with it. The card base is Summer Starfruit, and the other colors are Island Indigo, Tangerine Tango, and Bermuda Bay.

Celebrate You RAKs (Random Acts of Kindness) - These were both quick and fun to make, and I'm amazed at how well they turned out.  I resisted the urge to keep them for myself.  :)

I have just one more set of cards to blog, and then I can roll up my sleeves and get started on the next batch!  I do hope you're enjoying the pictures.

Smiles,

Joyce Spear (a.k.a. Stamper Joyce)