This past Friday evening, SCS held a VSN Mini with Book Club being the theme. There are 2 more mini's and then the big weekend VSN that will be held in August. I can't wait!!!
If you've never heard of this before, here's what it's all about: You know about the challenges on SCS, right? Well, the VSN Mini's are Mini Virtual Stamp Nights. So, we all get together, each in our jammies and huddle around our computer, and wait for the first challenge to pop up! We have 45 minutes to complete these challenges. Each VSN has a different, special theme. They have hostesses who host each challenge, and they all have a supply list beforehand to make sure you have everything you will need. And then each 45 minutes, the next hostess will start a new thread w/ their particular challenge. And then when you're done, you post your card on that particular thread just like a regular challenge. It's a lot of fun!
Ok, the first challenge of the evening was based on "The Scarlet Letter". So, I felt like I should capitalize on a red letter. Here's what I came up w/.
The second challenge was to make a card based on a cover jacket for a book. We had to use either vellum or acetate, and cover up the main image w/ them. So, I thought about the books I was currently reading, and settled on "The Shack" by William P. Young. I'm currently reading this for my book club. The book is about this guy who deals w/ a horrible tragedy, and then goes to this shack where something bad has happened a while after it has happened. He's invited back by someone, and when he gets to the shack, it's just that, a shack. But then, he goes up and gets his stuff and comes back down and really focuses on why he's there, and suddenly there's a change in the air. When he looks around, it's not just a shack, but a beautiful cabin at the base of a mountain. So, I had that picture in my head. When I was looking for a picture to put on my card, I searched through the Thomas Kincaid gallery online and found Everett's Cottage. When I saw this picture, I just knew that this would be the perfect image and matched the picture in my head when I was reading the book. When I was trying to figure out the sentiment, I kept thinking that sometimes all you see is a shack, all rusty and abandoned. But, someone else, say a homeless person, may see it as a haven against the elements until better weather occurs. So, the saying on the card says, "Many people look, but few people see". My dad came up w/ this quote!
I printed out the painting on regular paper and cut it to size. Then I printed the sentiment on acetate because vellum was going to hide the beauty of the painting.
The third card was a hard one! We had to create a card based on a poem! WHAT! Are you kidding me???!!!! So, after some thought, the first poem that came to mind was "Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost. I grabbed my Lovely As a Tree, and stamped w/Choc. Chip ink onto Going Gray paper. Then, I inked the paper w/ Versamark all over the trees, and then sprinkled Heat and Stick powder. I heated that up, and then sprinkled Dazzling Diamonds on top of that! I mounted it all onto red cardstock. I added red ribbon and a circle clip for embellishments. I wrote "Reflections" on the bottom corner, because that's what I would do if I was stopping by woods on a snowy evening!
The fourth and final challenge was to make my own book. This was also difficult, however, after spying these chipboard hollow books, I at least had my start. I can't really explain the thought process, because I screwed up several times and changed my mind twice as many times! I used my stencils for the letters. I went over them w/ my Souffle pen to add some depth. The picture is from last summer at the beach. I just love this picture!!! The colors are Real Red and Basic Black. It doesn't match the picture colorwise, but I don't really care!
Thanks for stopping by!
Happy Stamping!!!
We celebrated my son and daughter's birthdays together since their birthdays are 2 days apart. 
