The Shroom Addict

As winter rages on across the realm, food has begun to become scarce unless you are fortunate enough to have the coin to pay for it or had the good sense to create a winter storage supply, such as the one we have at the Guild Hall. Last night I was leaving the Inked Cricket after a few mustard seed ales and spotted a dirty looking house gnome digging through the tavern’s trash bins, obviously looking for something to eat. I started to approach the unfortunate chap, but when he spotted me, he scurried off deeper into the alley.

It’s been awhile since I’ve made a garbagey card, and these events seemed like the perfect time to bust another one out. I don’t even know where to begin with this one; there’s so much going on. The main image was a combination of body parts from the Dylusions sets “Pondering Petunia” (head), “Travelling Travis” (legs) and “Dependable Dotty” (body). The were all coloured with Distress Markers and glued together. I added some Glossy Accents to her lips for some shine. The santa hat was cut using the “Winnie the Pooh and Friends” cartridge. The gnome and mushrooms all came from the Lawn Fawn “Gnome Sweet Gnome” set. This is the first time that ink has touched that gnome stamp, and it felt good to finally use him. I wanted him to look a little more Christmasy so I gave him a pom-pom using the popcorn image from the October Afternoon “Very Merry” set. I then added glitter to both the hats’ pom-poms. I inked and distressed some tickets from the Tim Holtz “Odds and Ends” set and stamped the large sentiment from the Tim Holtz “Christmas Memories” set. The background paper was spritzed with some Dylusions spray ink to jazz it up. Lastly the grey panel was run through the Cuttlebug, sprayed with Perfect Pearls mist and tied with a scrap of ribbon from my stash to finish it off.

The inside sentiment was a combination of the Lawn Fawn “Gnome Sweet Gnome” set “Cozy Christmas” and a Close To My Heart set that’s just random little words (for the for...haha...)

The envelope was stamped with a cheapo Recollections brand stamp. This card earned me another +210 exp points in garbage assembly, allowing me to level up that skill! I didn’t think anything could get more random than the Dumpster Diving Katta card, but I was wrong.

Oh well. This gargantuan garbage pile will be entered into the following challenges:
Creative Card Crew Challenge #24: Anything Goes
Stamping For Pleasure: Rudolph Day
Divas By Design Challenge #63: Glitter and Sparkle
Pixie Dust Studio: Winter Holiday Creations Challenge
Cardz TV Stamps DT Challenge #20: To Die For
Dream Valley Challenge #46: Non-Traditional Christmas
Use It Tuesday Challenge #44: Ink It Up...Finally
The Octopode Factory Challenge: Words
Little Scrap Pieces Fun Friday “Make It Sparkle” Challenge
Simon Says Stamp: Anything Goes
The Corrosive Challenge #163: Anything Goes
Jingle Belles: December to Remember
Sparkles Christmas Challenge #23: Button or Bow
Hooked On Craft Challenge #27: Christmas
One Crazy Stamper December Sketch or Holiday Card

I finally caught up to the little gnome and offered him food and shelter and a place of employment at the Guild Hall - all of which he refused. Turns out he’s a power shroom addict and was rooting through the garbage for items to sell or trade for more shrooms. How the power shrooms had made their way here from the Mushroom Kingdom is beyond me, but I was determined to find the shroom smuggler and put a stop to it!

~ Guild Master Crystal ~

The Magicless Hat

Today as I was strolling through the Forest of Fiends, I came across a black silk top hat, slowing being pushed along by a gentle winter’s breeze. I bent down to retrieve the top hat and as I stood back up, a rainbowy glittery dust sprinkled to the ground from inside the hat. I glanced around me, hoping to find the owner of the tattered hat and could see no one around, save a snowperson some village children had made in the distance. Smiling to myself, I trudged through the snow, making my way towards the elaborately constructed snowperson. I placed the top hat on his head and stepped back as the same rainbowy glittery dust surrounded the snowperson and his twig arms started to twitch.

This spinner card didn’t turn out exactly as planned. The track was a little tooooo close to the bottom of the card, so the hat kinda touches the “ground” when the card is being displayed (as you can see in the picture). But it does spin! Oh well...on to business. The snowman was cut from the Winter Frolic cartridge. The hat came from Create-A-Critter. The “hills” of snow I hand cut as well as the “track” for the hat to go on. I embossed the snowman and the snow hill using my Cuttlebug and added a piece of yellow ribbon to the hat to give the card some texture. I then used some cheap glitter I bought AGES ago from the “everything-for-one-brass-coin-stand” to add some bling to the trees and star. The sentiment was stamped from the My Pink Stamper “Christmas Wishes” set.

The inside was coloured using water and the Christmas Distress Inks. The sentiment is also from the “Christmas Wishes” set whereas the snowflakes were just from some cheap Recollections brand set. I don’t know why I added a button to the inside of the card...but I did, earning me +56 irregularity exp points.

On the envelope, which I made due to the odd size of this card, I stamped a whooshy snowflake from that same cheap Recollections brand set. You know, for a super cheap stamp set from Michaels, it sure has come in handy for Christmas cards.

This topsy turvy delight will be entered into the following challenges:
CTV Stamps DT Challenge #19: “Scene It!”
Card Crafter’s Circle Challenge #49: Textures
CHNC Challenge #99: Use Something More Than 6 Months Old (that glitter is ancient!)
Paper Playtime Challenge #89: Anything Goes
Try It On Tuesday November Challenge 2: Christmas Sparkle

Just as I thought the snowperson was going to burst to life, the twigs stopped twitching, the rainbowy glittery dust settling to the frozen ground. I picked up the hat and looked inside, not sure what I was expecting to find. Replacing the hat on his head, I started walking back to the Guild Hall, and swore I heard a chuckle coming from behind me.

~ Guild Master Crystal ~

Peas Pass the Salt and Spices

Today the house gnomes were busy at the Guild Hall canning and freezing food to fill our winter stores. Winter tends to be harsh in these parts, and we need to be prepared for any emergency crafting sessions that may occur. Olga, the house gnome overseeing the winter food supply, assures me that we will be well stocked for the winter months ahead if the road to the village market should become impassable from any winter storms.  As I watched the little gnomes shelling peas to prepare for freezing, sudden random inspiration stuck.

So I know at first glance this seems random...maybe even a little weird...but stick with me. So the pea pod was cut from the Country Life cartridge. I did one of my favourite things (well mine and the Lady Commander of Copics' favourite things...) - added googly eyes to an inanimate object making it ULTRA MEGA CUTE! This earned me +2043 SUPPA KAWAII EXP POINTS, allowing me to level up twice!! I decided the peas (now named Peter the Pea Pod) needed a festive hat, so I cut him one using the Winnie the Pooh and Friends cartridge. Added some buttons and fancy score lines and the front of this card was done. Now let's look at the inside, where it all comes together. 

See...now Peter the Pea Pod makes sense, right? {lol} I used my Penny Black "Joyful Peas" stamp and coloured the little guys in with my Distress Markers. Ahhhh...this card still makes me giggle. 

I made an envelope and stamped some ornaments on it to make it look more Christmasy.

This garden variety Christmas Card will be entered into the following challenges:
Cardz TV: Anything Goes Cricut Cardz Challenge 
Tammy's Scrapin Corner Challenge #32: Anything Goes 
Christmas Stampin' All Year Long Challenge #32: Anything Goes 
Simon Says Stamp Challenge: Dies and/or Punches 
Divas By Design Challenge #56: Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge: Your Favorite (googly eyes)
Christmas Cards All Year 'Round October Challenge: non-traditional image with traditional colours 

As the day wore on, our shelves were lined with canned and dried foods alongside spices and salt for cooking. I'm glad the food situation is being taken care of for the winter. Now I just need to call upon the village enchantress to place a spell upon the store room doors so it won't be broken into like last year. That's going to cost some gold coins. Best get questing to earn the cash.

~ Guild Master Crystal ~ 

A Belligerent Drunk

After a hard day's work labouring in the Rainbow Fields, trying to harvest the colour crops before the frost, the Lady Commander and I decided to head into the village for a drink at the Inked Cricket, one of the local taverns. As I was ordering our mustard seed ales, one of the tavern's specialties, the Lady Commander went to find us a table in the busy pub. I paid for our drinks and turned to find the table my sister had claimed, only to see her drawing her kraft blade, Paper-Ripper. In front of her stood a drunk, howling wench waving a rusted knife. Paper-Ripper shone as Angela held it, ready to defend herself against the belligerent woman if necessary. How I find inspiration in situations such as this, I will never understand.

I started by stamping and colouring Jill from The Greeting Farm's Creepin Kit with Prismacolors. I liked it immediately after colouring it, then looked at it again and decided her dress looked like a watermelon. *sigh* Oh well....power through. I cut her a little Christmas hat using The Winnie the Pooh and Friends cartridge. It's hard to tell in the picture, but the white end is also glittered up, causing the Guardian of Glitter great glee. I embossed the green piece behind her with some snowflakes to make it more Christmas-like (again, hard to see in this horrible picture). The sentiment was from my new favourite set "Christmas Words" Dylusions set. Last I attached a piece of old lace on the bottom...and I mean ooooooold lace. Like this lace was from my GRANDMA'S stash!!! Using the Ancient Lace of Frills earned me +392 nostalgia exp points.

The sentiment continues on the inside. The little snowflakes came from the "Holly Jolly" Echo Park set. The Happy Holidays is from "Christmas Wishes" from My Pink Stamper.

I (of course) made a matching envelope with the Echo Park snowflakes.

I will be entering this into the following challenges:
The Greeting Farm's Farm Fresh Friday Challenge: Old Lace
Simon Says Stamp Challenge: Emboss It!
Divas By Design Challenge #53: Lovely Layers
Tammy's Scrapin Corner Challenge #28: Anything Goes

Luckily, some of the men in the tavern were able to remove the wench without it coming to blows with the Lady Commander. Paper-Ripper was ready to slice her to ribbons, which I suppose wouldn't have been so bad. Who can't use more ribbon?

~Guild Master Crystal ~