Sunday 29 November 2015

Ink Smooshing Thanks

Hey guys!  Today I want to show you the card I made for the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog Thanks/Thanksgiving Challenge.  Whew, that's a tongue twister, isn't it?  To make this card, I used some Michael's cardstock for the base, and some 140lb watercolor paper for the ink smooshing (see Kristina Werner for how to do that technique).  I stamped a sketchy heart from Tim Holtz' Heartfelt Visual Artistry collection in Versamark, and then embossed it in white.





I then used Your Next Stamp's Thanks die on black cardstock, which I mounted on fun foam (cut from the same die) and adhered it to the front of the ink smooshed panel.  I think mounted the panel onto some paper from my stash.  Both the smooshed panel and the layer behind it were cut using Your Next Stamp's stitched rectangle dies.  I finished the card off with some CtMH enamel dots and some Wink of Stella, which I used on the thanks die cut.  You can see the sparkle more in the close up picture below:



 

Thursday 26 November 2015

Joy to the World

So I've been hammering out some solid hours on Fallout 4 and decided I needed a little break for some crafting time (and also because I think my eyes were really about to fall out from all that strain).  I used some really awesome products from Your Next Stamp to make this very interactive card, including their Front Door Die Set and Sprinkles - Spreading Christmas Cheer Stamp set with matching dies.  The patterned papers are from my stash, and the cardstock is Recollections from Michael's.






I'm entering this card into the Your Next Stamp blog challenge.  This week, I used both the color AND the sketch challenge, with some definite modifications to the sketch.  That was mostly to make room for the spring to fit nicely so that the bunny would pop out when the door was opened.  The spring I used is from Close to My Heart, and is really a little too strong to be behind the door.  It kept popping the door out!  I had to use some velcro to keep the door closed!  I finished the front of the card with the die cut wreath and bow from the door die set, using Copic markers to give depth to the cuts.  The bunny was also colored with Copics (yeah... I see now why everyone loves them...).





Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go spend some more time in the Commonwealth blowing up some more Super Mutants and ghouls...

Sunday 15 November 2015

Star Shaker Ornament

I hadn't actually planned on making this; I had just bought Fallout 4 and had intended to play it all night until I realized when I stuck it into my Xbox One that it had to install first.  After I shed a few tears (I joke!! Mostly...), I decided to throw a little something together while I waited.  Inspired by the challenge at Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge blog, I grabbed my Little B Stitched Star dies and cut a frame for the front of the shaker as well as the background star.  My plan was to make something that represented the North Star.




Once I cut the stars out,  I used Chipped Sapphire and Mermaid Lagoon Distress Ink to color the background, to which I added stars using white watercolor paint.  I also cut hills using Simon Says Stamp's Stitched Hills dies and a house and trees using their Village die.  I used foam tape to make room to add some white seed beads and some sequins.  My first thought had actually been to turn this into a card, but I actually liked the star shape and thought it made an excellent ornament, so I grabbed some white and blue twine and threaded it through the star using a needle.  I love how it turned out!

I'm entering this into the following challenges:  Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge


EDIT:  OMG so excited!  I was selected for a Designer Spotlight for this ornament on the Simon Says Stamp Monday Blog challenge!  Here's my Badge below!

Simon Says Stamp

Monday 9 November 2015

Thanks for Poppies

Sometimes (ok, lots of times) I struggle when trying to make a card.  I have an idea in my head of what I want to use on a card, but not always a clear direction on where to go with those elements.  This card was one of those.  I was making a card for this weeks challenge at the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog, and I thought that I would like to include the Tulip die from Susan's Garden by Sizzix.  Of course, I wanted it to look more like a poppy, so I had to fiddle around with it a bit.  In the end, the card ended up taking me 3 hours or so, with most of that time being me stading around scratching my head!!





I started with a white scalloped card base that I got as a freebie from one of those UK crafting magazines.  I repeated stamped Thank You in a diagonal using Close to My Heart's Champagne ink to for the background.  The papers that I used were from my stash, some old K & Company, I believe.  I think it's important that we continue to use our old papers even if they might no be super trendy anymore.  Let's find a way to make those papers work!

I knew one thing that was important for me was that the card have a focal point.  That's why I chose to have the large pierced circle on the card.  It draws your eye right to the poppy. To make the poppy stand out even more, I inked the edges of the petals in Cranberry ink from CtMH, and did the same on the leaves with Topiary.  I finished the card off with a large bold Thanks stamp from CtMH in Cranberry ink, with a brad beside it.

Despite how long the card took to make, I'm really happy with the result!

I'd like to enter this card in the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge.

Sunday 8 November 2015

Love & Peace

I made this card for the challenge at Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge Blog.  I used the Furry Christmas stamp set from Simon Says Stamp, which I colored using ZIG Clean Color Real Brush markers on 140lb watercolor paper.  I messed up initially when I colored the cat, so I just stamped him again, recolored him, and fussy cut him out.  Then I glued him to the front of the image, which gave him a bit of dimension, too.




The backgound paper is a Michael's Recollection on e that I had in my stash.  I backed the image with some red cardstock, and placed a piece of vellum (which I colored green with alcohol markers) behind it.  This vellum was cut using Mama Elephant's Peek a Frame dies.  I also used the same die to cut the background paper and the panel with the colored image.

It doesn't show very well in the picture, but I used Glossy Accents on the noses of the dos and cat, as well as the antlers and scarf.  For the sentiment on my card, I decided to perform some stamp surgery, and cut the "love" part from the Joy and Love sentiment, and added the "Peace" stamp instead.  I put dots of white gel pen on the eyes to make the card pop, and that's my finished card!

I woud like to enter this in the Simon Says Stamp Monday Blog Challenge.



Tuesday 3 November 2015

Super Simple Christmas Shaker Card!

Hey there fellow crafters!  Today, I want to share a really easy, super cute shaker card with you.  These cards can be assembled in minutes, especially once you've got your stamp all picked out!  These cards are great for mass production, because you're just cutting your cardstock and the gluing everything together.  One little trick is going to make them a super easy treat to make!




Supply List:
  1.  Colored 8 1/2 x 11 inch cardstock.
  2. White cardstock.
  3. Glitter tape/Ribbon
  4. SHAKER STICKERS!!  (We're cheating, I know!  I got mine from Dollarama.)

First, you need to cut your card base.  I used Michael's Recollection 8 1/2 x 11 inch cardstock in blue for my snowman card, and green for my Christmas tree card.  Cut the cardstock in half lengthwise so that you end up with two pieces of cardstock that are 4 1/4 x 11 inches long.  Fold these in half to create a top folding card.

Next, you need a piece of white cardstock that's 4 1/8 x 4 7/8 (you can change the measurement depending on how much white you want).  Now, determine where you want your shaker to be.  Lightly place the sticker to determine placement, and then use a light pencil stroke to remember where. Once you've done this, it's time to stamp your sentiment!  Then, place the shaker sticker back and press it firmly onto the paper.  Then, use a glitter or metallic pen to draw a border around the outer edges of the white cardstock.

Place your glitter tape/ribbon so that the bottom of the tape is just over a quarter of an inch from the bottom, or to your liking.  Now, mount the card on fun foam (or use foam tape), and stick the panel above the glitter tape.  There!  You're all done your simple shaker card!




I'd also like to enter the snowman shaker card in the folowing challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Blog Challenge:  Anything Goes

Monday 2 November 2015

You Are Soy Awesome!

That's no typo in my title!  This sweet (no, wait, SALTY) card was inspired by the Your Next Stamp blog challenge.  I used their sketch as my inspiration, but as you can see, I put the smaller rectangle behind my front panel instead of in front.  I was also inspired by the color part of their challenge, but I don't think I used all of them in this card. 



I used YNS's Soy Awesome stamp set for both the image and the sentiment, while the papers are from last year's Close to My Heart.  I colored the image with my Prismacolor pencils, and blended with mineral spirits.  If you haven't tried coloring with these pencils yet, give them a try!  You can get some really great blending!  The background was done by sponging Hero Arts Unicorn ink through the Reversed Chicken Wire stencil by The Crafter's Workshop.  It gives a really subtle effect, which was perfect for this card!  I kept the card simple, and finished it off with a bit of Glossy Accents for the eyes.

You can play along with the challenge on the YNS blog.