Grilling with the Duelng Darlings!

It's the 15th of the month and time for another duel with the Dueling Darlings.  Team leaders Darlene for the Dazzlers and Tami for the Divas chose "Grilling" as the theme for July.  I'm on the Diva team and love the card kit Tami sent us.  It included this super cute stamped image by Whipper Snapper called "Grill Sergeant".  Along with this image she had some terrific designer papers, ribbon, eyelets, rhinestones and die cuts.  I love that she also included some netting recyled from produce items.  Here's my take on the card kit:

Designer Paper

Red Check by My Mind's Eye Dilly Dally 'Best'

Picnic by Karen Foster Design, 'Life's a Picnic'

Red ribbon by Offray

Materials not included in the kit are

Cardstock:

brown: Gina K Designs

red: Bazzill's "Red Devil"

green:  Stampin' Up "Gumball Green" and "Kiwi Kiss"

Square rhinestones from Stampin' Up

Images were colored with Copic markers

My layout is based on this sketch from Mojo Monday 249:

:

Part of the challenge this month was to include a favorite grilling or picnic recipe.  My husband is the grill master in my family and here is a favorite recipe he's done many times:

Garlic-Mustard Marinated Flank Steak

(from Paul Kirk's Championship Barbecue)

Serves 6 to 8

Garlic-Mustard Marinade

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons granulated cane sugar

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons minced green onions (white and green parts)

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teasppoon minced fresh parsley leaves

two 1 1/2 pound flank steaks, trimmed of any fat

1.  To make the marinade, combine the marinade ingredients in a medium-size nonreactive bowl until well blended.  place the flank steaks in a shallow nonreactive baking dish or a zippered-top plastic bag.  Pour the marinade over the meat, making sure they're covered.  Cover with plastic wrap or seal and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 4 to 6 hours or overnight.

2.  Prepare a medium-hot fire in your grill.

3.  Remove the steaks from the marinade, discarding the marinade.  Place the steaks directly over the coals, cover, and grill to your desired degree of doneness, 6 to 8 minutes per side for medium rare.

4.  Let rest for 5 minutes.  To serve, slice thinly across the grain on a 60-degree bias.

DELISH!

Please go a check out my Diva's teammates contributions to this duel here:

Kelly: http://sandcastlestamper.blogspot.com/

Carol: http://lostinmycraftroom.blogspot.com/

Barb:  http://inkingintoretirement.blogspot.com/

Jamie: http://butterflystamper71.blogspot.com/

Laura Jean:  http://buckygirl.blogspot.com/

Tami: http://blueinksdesign.blogspot.com/

And check out the Dazzlers' contributions starting here:

Jeanette: http://creativeplayischeaperthantherapy.blogspot.com/

 

A Wiper Card for a Swap and for a Birthday Boy!

I belong to a fabulous group of card creators on Splitcoaststampers (SCS) called Sisterhood of the Traveling Cards.  Each month a different "Sistah" hosts the swap, selects the theme and card swap requirements.  This month my Sistah Barb challenged us to create cards using a unique fold.  I love creating cards with unique folds and or techniques.  Usually for a challenge like this I would try to create a card using a fold or technique I had never tried before.  Unfortunately, the timing was not condusive to putting the time and effort in creating something new so I went with an old standby that I've used before and that was the wiper card.  (You can find the tutorial for a wiper card on SCS here:
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/wipercard/)

For weeks prior to the deadline for this card I was preparing for a several month stay in Washington state for the summer.  Part of my preparations was to complete cards or have all the elements prepared for completion of card for multiple card swaps, birthdays and anniversaries that were to occur during our stay in WA.  My grand-nephew has a birthday in July so I decided in his honor to use a sports theme for my wiper card.  This was a big winner for me cuz I got to "kill two birds with one stone".  Hee Hee!

Here is the card closed:

Here is the card open:

  This image featuring multiple sporting equipment was embossed with silver embossing powder on black cardstock which was then layered on glossy white cardstock and attached to the blue wiper card front.  Football, soccer ball, basketball and baseball brads were attached at each corner.  I used some designer paper with letters spelling "sports" on the smaller side panels.  The wiper portion of the card has the sentiment "Have An All-Star Birthday!" on white with a black panel.

I hope my nephew and my SCS Sistahs enjoy receiving this card.