Shiny Teacups and Baby Love x 2

Hello Stamplings!

How are you doing? I hope you're having a great week. Thank you for all your well-wishes following my last post. I am feeling a bit better and I appreciate your kind best wishes. It's a process, but it will all work out in the end.

Like so many of you, when I'm feeling meh and low on mojo juice, I turn to my favorite challenges to light a fire under my assets. There are so many challenges that spark me and Loll and Bonnie's series of CAS challenges are among them. I set to work and, sure enough, they dialed in my focus, which is just what I needed. I have one to share today.

Onefer

This design is for CAS Mix Up Card Challenge where the brief is to make a faux stained glass design. Here's a close-up so you can see the faux better:

I have to say I love the die I picked for this technique, which is Teacup Stack by Poppystamps. The bottom layer of teacups was die-cut from a Brusho background. Then the cups was die-cut another three times in white. Two white die-cuts were glued to form a stack and then I applied Glossy Accents, with Hammy's help in the tight spaces. After that dried the final white die cut was glued to the top of the stack. In one of her posts, Loll shared the tip of saving the top die cut until after you spread the gloss. That lets you get messy with glopping the gloss because then you can cover it with the top layer and everything looks crisp and clean.

The double stitched oval is from MFT and the borders are Washie tape. In order for the tape not to detract the eye from the focus pocus teacups, I folded it over the edge of the panel so only two narrow stripes are showing.

Challenges

• CAS Mix Up: Faux stained glass, plus stamping, plus die-cutting.
• CAS on Friday: CAS embossing (dry or heat).
• Poppy Challenge: Spring cleaning (something old or CAS).

Twofer

For years now, another favorite challenge of mine is Less is More. The current challenge is "Horoscopes." I chose Gemini so I could make a twin baby card. Did you know Gemini is represented by the twins Castor and Pollux (known as Dioscuri) who were granted shared half-immortality after the death of the mortal brother, Castor. Okay then.

The little twin onesies are from Stamplorations, paper-pieced with ancient pp. The sediment is also ancient from Paper Smooches. The hem-stitch border die is NBUS from Spellbinders. Everything is popped up with butter and salt.

Challenges

• Less is More: Horoscopes.
• Mix It Up: Anything goes + optional inked background.
• Watercooler Wednesday: Tristan's All About Occasions.

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Speaking of twins:

Every year I get completely addicted to watching various live cams provided for free at explore.org. I am particularly thrilled with the bald eagle hatches and I just found out today there are also owl cams! There are cameras at several eagle nests on The Channel Islands, California, and another nest in Decorah, Iowa. I highly recommend checking out explore.com unless, of course, you want to get anything else done!

By the way, the above nest has one more egg which might be hatching as we speak so there will be triplets in this one! (Fraser Point nest.)

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Enjoy your day! No, seriously, enjoy! LITS!*

As always, thank you for coming by to visit the Playhouse and special thanks to you if you take the time to join as a follower! Please let me know you came by so I can be sure and return the flavor!

*Life is too short!

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