Happy Day for CTS164

Before I share today’s super-clean card, I want to give a big THANK YOU to the talented designers at CAS(E) This Sketch for selecting my “You’re my Anchor” card as an Honorable Mention.  There were so many amazing projects shared with last week’s sketch – I’m so happy to be recognized among them.  While I enjoy playing along with challenges to spark my creativity, and it’s always so nice to be mentioned by the design team. If you missed this card (or just want to take another look), you can see it here.

This week’s CAS(E) this Sketch challenge is a great one – there are so many great things you can do with the fun layout.  I immediately reached for my Calypso Coral ink and made this festive birthday card:

And here’s the banner for the challenge that inspired my card:

Tips, Tricks and Reminders

• Balloon Celebration and Perfect Pairings.  These two stamp sets are perfectly paired – one is available in the Occasions Catalog, and one is a Sale-a-Bration product (you can earn Perfect Pairings with a $50 order – woo hoo!).  While I could have used almost ANY celebratory sentiment, the “happy day” from Perfect Pairings was EXACTLY what I wanted.  Here’s a looked at the two stamp sets that came together to create this card:
  

  Balloon Celebration, Stampin’ Up!

  

  Perfect Pairings, Stampin’ Up!

• Masking.  To create the soft band of Calypso Coral across the bottom of the the Whisper White, I masked the cardstock with two strips of Post-it Tape (you can buy Post-it Tape at any office supplies store) and painted it with Calypso Coral ink and my Clarity Stencil Brushes.  These brushes are soft and gentle, so I was able to get a super-clean and soft layer of ink right down the middle.  I then stamped my balloon centers, the balloon borders and added the strings with my Smoky Slate Stampin’ Write Marker (offered as a single marker).
• Color Combination.  I’ve been using Calypso Coral quite a bit lately.  It needs a dark or neutral color to ground it a bit, so the bright and sweet Calypso pairs beautifully with blacks and grays.  I paired it with Basic Gray for today’s festive card.  If you like this combination of colors, too, feel free to save this:

Stamp Sets:  Balloon Celebration, Perfect Pairings (Sale-a-Bration)  Papers:  Basic Gray, Calypso Coral, Whisper White  Inks:  Calypso Coral, Archival Basic Gray  Accessories:  Stampin’ Dimensionals

Balloon Celebration Photopolymer Stamp Set – 140675

Price: $26.00

Balloon Celebration Photopolymer Bundle – 140810

Price: $37.25

Perfect Pairings Clear-Mount Stamp Set – 141261

Price: $0.00

Perfect Pairings Wood-Mount Stamp Set – 141258

Price: $0.00

Smoky Slate Stampin’ Write Marker – 131898

Price: $3.50

Calypso Coral 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock – 122925

Price: $7.00

Basic Gray 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock – 121044

Price: $7.00

Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock – 100730

Price: $8.50

Calypso Coral Classic Stampin’ Pad – 126983

Price: $6.50

Basic Gray Archival Stampin’ Pad – 140932

Price: $7.00

Supply List

I hope you’ll pop over to the CAS(E) this Sketch site to see the cards by the design team members and to play along with this week’s challenge.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Brian