MY HOUSE MOUSE DESIGN TEAM FINAL CHALLENGE ENTRY

Hey All!  Happy weekend to all of my favorite blogging friends, and if you are reading this, that means YOU!  LOL

Well, it is time to reveal my entries into the House Mouse Design Team final challenge.  But before I do, I want to thank each and every one of you who left me the most remarkable set of encouraging comments I've ever seen.  Honestly, I couldn't believe how sweet, nice, positive and encouraging you all were with your comments.  Seriously, when I think about all the responses, I get a little watery around the eyes . . . so thank you so much for being so kind.

OK, here they are.  As you know from the previous post, we had to submit two cards using the exact same image on both. . .One had to be very simple "less is more".  So here is my "simple" card:

I thought that you can't go wrong with a clean and simple combination of black and white.  When you throw in a third color (orange in this case for a traditional Halloween color combo) it really makes your image pop with little effort.  When you first look at this, it almost looks like a framed gallery print.  The image is certainly the focal point of the card and not distracted from by embellishments or patterned papers.  You don't know how hard it was to "leave it alone"!  LOL  I so wanted to add "things".  I even stamped the sentiment right onto the card which I normally don't do.  The only "extra" I used on the card was some glitter on their wings:

You'll need to click on the picture to see it better.  I picked this image because my Mom had asked me to do a card for one of her good friends that she is seeing on Tuesday.  So when I made the card below first, I decided to stick with it and use the image for the challenge.  Also, this is the perfect Halloween card for those who are more religious and don't like traditional Halloween images.

So, now for the "over the top" card.  Honestly, it is so hard for me to do that.  I don't like to clutter up cards with a lot of distraction.  However, that is why it is called a "challenge" huh?  So here is the card using the same image:

I photographed it at an angle to show that the inside is decorated too.  I do have a lot going on with this card.  Here is the list:

1.  Black and yellow brads on each side of the computer generated sentiment

2.  A double looped yellow bow with black contrasting stitching

3.  Black photo corners surrounding the image and on the inside framing the writing area

4.  Hand colored yellow pearls added to their antennas for more dimension

5.  Bright yellow checked background paper matted with black

6.  Quadruple matting

7.  Glitter on the wings

8.  Foam squares used to lift the image and sentiment panel from the card for dimension

Here is a close up of their wings which shows the glitter even better than the first:

So, this completes my entry for the DT challenge.  I was going to add a few more things to this card, but decided against it.  I have a certain style of my own, and I didn't want to compromise that.  One of the comments made on my last post reminded me of that and that thought kept running through my mind.

So, I hope these are good enough to get me in.  I would so love to be a part of their team.  Their design team is top notch, and as some of you have commented on several of my posts, that the House Mouse images are my forte.  I appreciate that because I do LOVE these stamps.  I find that the images and the cards that I make with them, make me smile.  And we all need a lot of things these days to make us smile.  I just find a little magic in these images and they bring out the kid in me.

OK, that's it.  I don't know when they are making the decision, but I will let you all know the outcome as soon as I know.  I'm up against some great competitors and I wish them all the best of luck.

Again, thanks so much for being a part of this.  I couldn't ask for better people to be behind me.

Love ya Kiddos!

Curt O'Brien

"God, please help me be the person that my dogs think I am."