I'm back with another card smorgasbord, and this time it's a bonanza of bright, fun birthday cards.
Supplies:
Stamps: Birthday Basics Turnabout (Concord & 9th)
Paper: Thick Whisper White, Whisper White, Granny Apple Green, Coastal Cabana, Flirty Flamingo, Daffodil Delight card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Granny Apple Green, Coastal Cabana, Flirty Flamingo, Daffodil Delight (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Birthday Basics dies (Concord & 9th), Turnabout Jig (Concord & 9th), ZIG Wink of Stella clear glitter brush pen (Kuretake), white crochet thread (DMC), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), Corner Chomper (We R Memory Keepers), Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute), foam tape (3M)
This card and the next one both use the Birthday Basics Turnabout stamp set. For this card I used a different color ink for each "turn" to create a colorful background.
Supplies:
Stamps: Birthday Basics Turnabout (Concord & 9th), Birthday Best (Stampin' Up!)
Paper: Whisper White, Coastal Cabana, Granny Apple Green card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Coastal Cabana, Granny Apple Green (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Birthday Basics dies (Concord & 9th), Turnabout Jig (Concord & 9th), Large and Small Stitched Rectangle Stackable dies (Lawn Fawn), Go Green sequins (Craft Medley), ZIG Wink of Stella clear glitter brush pen (Kuretake), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute), foam tape (3M)
For this birthday card I used one color ink on the same color card stock to create a tone-on-tone background.
Supplies
Stamps: Birthday Basics (Taylored Expressions)
Paper: Thick Whisper White, Whisper White, Basic Black card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Party Collection ink set (Orange Twist, Grass Skirt, Rockin' Red, Fiesta Blue) (Catherine Pooler); Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Sparkling Silk (Fun Stampers Journey), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute), foam tape (3M)
Supplies:
Paper: Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!), 110-lb Solar White card stock (Neenah), Oh My Stars Collection Kit (Bella Blvd), acetate (unknown)
Accessories: Birthday Wishes Frame die (Simon Says Stamp), Small Stitched Rectangle Stackable dies (Lawn Fawn), sequins (Hand Made Modern), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute), foam tape (3M)
I don't make a lot of shaker cards, but they are fun. I made these two -- a masculine and feminine version -- with the Birthday Wishes Frame die. I absolutely love this collection of paper with its bright colors and festive patterns.
Supplies:
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Gray, textured and smooth Bermuda Bay (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Pool Party (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Tim Holtz Mini Stencil Set 40 (Stampers Anonymous), blender brushes (Picket Fence Studios), Wonky Stitched Circles dies (My Favorite Things), Happy Birthday die (Stampin' Up!), Skinny Mini Borders 2 dies (Taylored Expressions), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), foam tape (3M)
I used two colors of ink when I created the stenciled background on this card: Pool Party and Bermuda Bay. I was hoping for a more noticeable difference, but the two colors ended up looking very similar. I think I should have used a lighter hand when applying the Pool Party ink.
And that's it for me for 2019. I do still have cards left from the year, so I'll be posting those through the rest of the week. And come back tomorrow to see the 2020 desk calendars I made as Christmas gifts. I delivered the last calendar today, so I can finally share them online.
Happy New Year and thanks for stopping by!
Tuesday, December 31, 2019
Llama gift set
Earlier this year my friend's daughter celebrated her thirteenth birthday. I have a hard time choosing gifts for 13-year-olds, so I went the easy route and got her a Target gift card. Since the gift wasn't the most exciting, I decided to have a little fun with the gift packaging.
Supplies:
Paper: Llama Love paper pad (Craft mith); Basic Black card stock, gold foil sheets (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Curly Q Cutting Plate (Taylored Expressions), The Giving Gift Box dies (Divinity Designs), shimmer mist (made with Taylored Expressions' Shimmer Liquid Watercolor), gold ribbon (Michaels), Scor-Tape (Scor-Pal), foam tape (3M), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
I decided to make a coordinating llama-themed card and gift box, and the Llama Love paper pad made it easy! I chose three different sheets from the pad: one for the card background and box base, one for the top of the box, and one for the focal image (I hand-cut the image of the llama out of the 12" x 12" sheet).
I used black card stock for the card base and added a layer of the patterned paper. I cut the Curly Q Cutting Plate out of gold foil paper and adhered that over the patterned paper.
After cutting out the llama image, I coated it with clear shimmer spray to give it a nice sparkle. Then I used foam tape to attach it to the card front.
I used a set of gift card box dies from Divinity Designs to make the box, and it was so easy. I love that it's big enough to use for other small gift items, too, such as jewelry or chocolates. I added a lip balm in the box with the gift card, and it was perfect. The die set also includes a die to cut out the top of the box lid, so you could add clear acetate and then see through the lid. I decided to keep the cute pattern on the box lid instead. I secured the box with a simple band of gold ribbon.
And the best part is that the gift card in the box coordinates with the packaging!
Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you have a safe and happy New Year's Eve, and may 2020 bring you kindness, adventure, love and laughter. Happy New Year!
Supplies:
Paper: Llama Love paper pad (Craft mith); Basic Black card stock, gold foil sheets (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Curly Q Cutting Plate (Taylored Expressions), The Giving Gift Box dies (Divinity Designs), shimmer mist (made with Taylored Expressions' Shimmer Liquid Watercolor), gold ribbon (Michaels), Scor-Tape (Scor-Pal), foam tape (3M), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
I decided to make a coordinating llama-themed card and gift box, and the Llama Love paper pad made it easy! I chose three different sheets from the pad: one for the card background and box base, one for the top of the box, and one for the focal image (I hand-cut the image of the llama out of the 12" x 12" sheet).
I used black card stock for the card base and added a layer of the patterned paper. I cut the Curly Q Cutting Plate out of gold foil paper and adhered that over the patterned paper.
After cutting out the llama image, I coated it with clear shimmer spray to give it a nice sparkle. Then I used foam tape to attach it to the card front.
I used a set of gift card box dies from Divinity Designs to make the box, and it was so easy. I love that it's big enough to use for other small gift items, too, such as jewelry or chocolates. I added a lip balm in the box with the gift card, and it was perfect. The die set also includes a die to cut out the top of the box lid, so you could add clear acetate and then see through the lid. I decided to keep the cute pattern on the box lid instead. I secured the box with a simple band of gold ribbon.
And the best part is that the gift card in the box coordinates with the packaging!
Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you have a safe and happy New Year's Eve, and may 2020 bring you kindness, adventure, love and laughter. Happy New Year!
Sunday, December 29, 2019
My 1,000th blog post!
Woohoo! I can hardly believe this is my 1,000th blog post. How did that happen? I feel like I should have done something really cool or fancy to mark the occasion. But with all the hullabaloo of the holidays, I didn't have time to think of or plan anything. So a regular old blog post it is.
I still have a lot (a lot, a lot) of cards I want to post before the end of the year. (And let's be honest, it's probably going to take the rest of the week, so I'll spill over into the new year.) I'll be posting them in groups, so for the most part I'll be focusing on photos and supply lists and probably not going into a lot of detail. But I'm happy to answer any questions you leave in the comments section, so ask away!
Today I'm going to share the rest of the cards I made during the 30-Day Coloring Challenge. (I shared the first few cards and a little info about the challenge in my blog post on Dec. 14, 2019.) It's an eclectic group of cards with, I think, a little something for everyone.
Supplies:
Stamps: Tulip Bouquet (Heartfelt Creations)
Paper: Basic Black card stock, Typeset Specialty Designer Series Paper (DSP) (Stampin' Up!); watercolor paper (Strathmore)
Ink: VersaFine Onyx Black (Tsukineko); ZIG Clean Color Real Brush markers (Kuretake)
Accessories: Tulip Bouquet dies (Heartflet Creations), linen thread (Stampin' Up!), Holiday Rhinestones (Stampin' Up!), Dimensionals
I absolutely love tulips, and I love how these tulips -- and the finished card -- turned out. Apparently I didn't write down the specific markers I used for this card and the others I colored with Clean Color markers. Sorry about that!
Supplies:
Stamps: Spice Pot (Waffle Flower)
Paper: Watercolor paper (Strathmore), Concord Crush card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: VersaFine Onyx Black (Tsukineko), ZIG Clean Color Real Brush markers (Kuretake)
Accessories: Corner Chomper (We R Memory Keepers), foam tape (3M)
I couldn't figure out how to embellish this card because nothing looked quite right. So I left it with just the focal panel on a solid card base.
Supplies:
Stamps: Fresh Cut Bouquet (Memory Box)
Paper: Whisper White, Chocolate Chip card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Chocolate Truffle amalgam ink (Gina K Designs); colored pencils: PC908, PC909, PC912, PC916, PC922, PC932, PC946, PC995, PC1034 (Prismacolor)
Accessories: Express-O Yourself mini prills (USArt Quest), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), Sentimental dies (Avery Elle), Large Stitched Rectangle Stackables dies (Lawn Fawn), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
This card and the following one are made with the same stamp and the same layout. I just switched to a cooler color palette for the second card and eliminated the die-cut sentiment.
Supplies:
Stamps: Fresh Cut Bouquet (Memory Box)
Paper: Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Chocolate Truffle amalgam ink (Gina K Designs); colored pencils: PC989, PC1005, PC905, PC992, PC1008, PC932, PC1002, PC917, PC902, PC911, PC1007 (Prismacolor)
Accessories: Express-O Yourself mini prills (USArt Quest), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), Large Stitched Rectangle Stackables dies (Lawn Fawn), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
Supplies:
Stamps: Oh My Whiskers, Purrrfect Sentiments (Honey Bee Stamps)
Paper: Pool Party, Lucky Limeade card stock (Stampin' Up!); watercolor paper (Strathmore)
Ink: VersaFine Onyx Black (Tsukineko), ZIG Clean Color Real Brush Markers (Kuretake), Sugar Cube (Taylored Expressions)
Accessories: Oh My Whiskers dies (Honey Bee Stamps), Mini CLouds Stencil (The Crafter's Workshop), blender brush (Picket Fence Studios), Grassy Border die (Lawn Fawn), clear embossing powder (Stampamania), foam tape (3M)
Supplies:
Paper: Thick Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!), watercolor paper (Strathmore)
Ink: Fadeout No-Line Coloring Ink (Ink on 3), Inktense colored pencils (Derwent)
Accessories: Pattern Party decorative masks (Stampin' Up!), blender brush (Picket Fence Studios), water brush (Close to My Heart), clear Wink of Stella glitter brush pen (ZIG), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), Large Stitched Rectangle Stackables dies (Lawn Fawn), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
For this card I used a no-line coloring technique with a stencil instead of a stamp, which I described in my
Dec. 14 blog post. This was the first time I used my Inktense colored pencils, so I went with a simple, bold rainbow palette.
Supplies:
Stamps/dies: November 2019 My Monthly Hero Kit (Hero Arts)
Paper: Crumb Cake, Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!); Spring Fling paper (Honey Bee Stamps); Wood Designer Card stock (My Mind's Eye)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); Blends/Blendabilities alcohol markers: Night of Navy, Balmy Blue, Granny Apple Green, Smoky Slate, Bronze, Mocha, Soft Suede (Stampin' Up!); gold paint pen (Sharpie)
Accessories: Regals Candy Dots (Stampin' Up!), Dimensonals (Stampin' Up!)
This was a Christmas-themed kit, but I wanted to create a little non-holiday scene. I think it's pretty cute and cozy!
Supplies:
Stamps/dies: December 2018 My Monthly Hero Kit (Hero Arts)
Paper: Pool Party card stock (Stampin' Up!), watercolor paper (unknown)
Ink: VersaFine Onyx Black (Tsukineko), Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko), ZIG Clean Color Real Brush markers (Kuretake)
Accessories: Shimmer Liquid Watercolor (Taylored Expressions) (made into a shimmer mist with rubbing alcohol), clear Wink of Stella glitter brush pen (ZIG), mini action wobble spring (Art Impressions) Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
I sprayed the whole front of this card with shimmer mist, and it is so sparkly! And the fairy is on a mini action wobble spring, so she flutters a bit.
Supplies:
Stamps: Cabin Circlet Mini Tryfold (Art Impressions)
Paper: Thick Whisper White, Basic Black card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); blender pencil and colored pencils: PC911, PC1005, PC1084, PC925, PC904, PC948, PC1072, PC1074, PC933, PC901, PC908, PC909, PC943, PC947 (Prismacolor)
Accessories: Birthday Top Edgers dies (Impression Obsession), burlap trim ribbon (Stampin' Up!), black brad (Making Memories)
To make this card I used a stamp and die set in the Mini Tryfold line from Art Impressions. The set comes with three stamp images, two dies and instructions. It was easier than I thought it would be to create the card, although wasn't sure how to finish it off at the end. I left this one pretty clean and simple for a more masculine card. Below are additional pictures of the card opened and the colored images.
Thanks for stopping by today and being part of my 1,000th blog post -- and for making it to the end of this long post! Stay tuned for more cards and projects soon!
I still have a lot (a lot, a lot) of cards I want to post before the end of the year. (And let's be honest, it's probably going to take the rest of the week, so I'll spill over into the new year.) I'll be posting them in groups, so for the most part I'll be focusing on photos and supply lists and probably not going into a lot of detail. But I'm happy to answer any questions you leave in the comments section, so ask away!
Today I'm going to share the rest of the cards I made during the 30-Day Coloring Challenge. (I shared the first few cards and a little info about the challenge in my blog post on Dec. 14, 2019.) It's an eclectic group of cards with, I think, a little something for everyone.
Supplies:
Stamps: Tulip Bouquet (Heartfelt Creations)
Paper: Basic Black card stock, Typeset Specialty Designer Series Paper (DSP) (Stampin' Up!); watercolor paper (Strathmore)
Ink: VersaFine Onyx Black (Tsukineko); ZIG Clean Color Real Brush markers (Kuretake)
Accessories: Tulip Bouquet dies (Heartflet Creations), linen thread (Stampin' Up!), Holiday Rhinestones (Stampin' Up!), Dimensionals
I absolutely love tulips, and I love how these tulips -- and the finished card -- turned out. Apparently I didn't write down the specific markers I used for this card and the others I colored with Clean Color markers. Sorry about that!
Supplies:
Stamps: Spice Pot (Waffle Flower)
Paper: Watercolor paper (Strathmore), Concord Crush card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: VersaFine Onyx Black (Tsukineko), ZIG Clean Color Real Brush markers (Kuretake)
Accessories: Corner Chomper (We R Memory Keepers), foam tape (3M)
I couldn't figure out how to embellish this card because nothing looked quite right. So I left it with just the focal panel on a solid card base.
Supplies:
Stamps: Fresh Cut Bouquet (Memory Box)
Paper: Whisper White, Chocolate Chip card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Chocolate Truffle amalgam ink (Gina K Designs); colored pencils: PC908, PC909, PC912, PC916, PC922, PC932, PC946, PC995, PC1034 (Prismacolor)
Accessories: Express-O Yourself mini prills (USArt Quest), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), Sentimental dies (Avery Elle), Large Stitched Rectangle Stackables dies (Lawn Fawn), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
This card and the following one are made with the same stamp and the same layout. I just switched to a cooler color palette for the second card and eliminated the die-cut sentiment.
Supplies:
Stamps: Fresh Cut Bouquet (Memory Box)
Paper: Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Chocolate Truffle amalgam ink (Gina K Designs); colored pencils: PC989, PC1005, PC905, PC992, PC1008, PC932, PC1002, PC917, PC902, PC911, PC1007 (Prismacolor)
Accessories: Express-O Yourself mini prills (USArt Quest), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), Large Stitched Rectangle Stackables dies (Lawn Fawn), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
Supplies:
Stamps: Oh My Whiskers, Purrrfect Sentiments (Honey Bee Stamps)
Paper: Pool Party, Lucky Limeade card stock (Stampin' Up!); watercolor paper (Strathmore)
Ink: VersaFine Onyx Black (Tsukineko), ZIG Clean Color Real Brush Markers (Kuretake), Sugar Cube (Taylored Expressions)
Accessories: Oh My Whiskers dies (Honey Bee Stamps), Mini CLouds Stencil (The Crafter's Workshop), blender brush (Picket Fence Studios), Grassy Border die (Lawn Fawn), clear embossing powder (Stampamania), foam tape (3M)
Supplies:
Paper: Thick Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!), watercolor paper (Strathmore)
Ink: Fadeout No-Line Coloring Ink (Ink on 3), Inktense colored pencils (Derwent)
Accessories: Pattern Party decorative masks (Stampin' Up!), blender brush (Picket Fence Studios), water brush (Close to My Heart), clear Wink of Stella glitter brush pen (ZIG), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), Large Stitched Rectangle Stackables dies (Lawn Fawn), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
For this card I used a no-line coloring technique with a stencil instead of a stamp, which I described in my
Dec. 14 blog post. This was the first time I used my Inktense colored pencils, so I went with a simple, bold rainbow palette.
Supplies:
Stamps/dies: November 2019 My Monthly Hero Kit (Hero Arts)
Paper: Crumb Cake, Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!); Spring Fling paper (Honey Bee Stamps); Wood Designer Card stock (My Mind's Eye)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); Blends/Blendabilities alcohol markers: Night of Navy, Balmy Blue, Granny Apple Green, Smoky Slate, Bronze, Mocha, Soft Suede (Stampin' Up!); gold paint pen (Sharpie)
Accessories: Regals Candy Dots (Stampin' Up!), Dimensonals (Stampin' Up!)
This was a Christmas-themed kit, but I wanted to create a little non-holiday scene. I think it's pretty cute and cozy!
Supplies:
Stamps/dies: December 2018 My Monthly Hero Kit (Hero Arts)
Paper: Pool Party card stock (Stampin' Up!), watercolor paper (unknown)
Ink: VersaFine Onyx Black (Tsukineko), Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko), ZIG Clean Color Real Brush markers (Kuretake)
Accessories: Shimmer Liquid Watercolor (Taylored Expressions) (made into a shimmer mist with rubbing alcohol), clear Wink of Stella glitter brush pen (ZIG), mini action wobble spring (Art Impressions) Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
I sprayed the whole front of this card with shimmer mist, and it is so sparkly! And the fairy is on a mini action wobble spring, so she flutters a bit.
Supplies:
Stamps: Cabin Circlet Mini Tryfold (Art Impressions)
Paper: Thick Whisper White, Basic Black card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); blender pencil and colored pencils: PC911, PC1005, PC1084, PC925, PC904, PC948, PC1072, PC1074, PC933, PC901, PC908, PC909, PC943, PC947 (Prismacolor)
Accessories: Birthday Top Edgers dies (Impression Obsession), burlap trim ribbon (Stampin' Up!), black brad (Making Memories)
To make this card I used a stamp and die set in the Mini Tryfold line from Art Impressions. The set comes with three stamp images, two dies and instructions. It was easier than I thought it would be to create the card, although wasn't sure how to finish it off at the end. I left this one pretty clean and simple for a more masculine card. Below are additional pictures of the card opened and the colored images.
Thanks for stopping by today and being part of my 1,000th blog post -- and for making it to the end of this long post! Stay tuned for more cards and projects soon!
Tuesday, December 24, 2019
Christmas ornaments
It's late on Christmas Eve, and I'm waiting for midnight mass, so it seems like a good time to pop in with a quick post to share the Christmas ornaments I made this year.
I didn't keep any supply lists, so leave me a comment if you have any questions.
I found a tutorial for these adorable gnome ornaments on the Ruffles & Rainboots blog, and I knew right away I wanted to make them. Their pretty easy to make, and once I got the hang of it, they came together pretty quickly. (My biggest issue was the strands of hot glue everywhere!) I did try using yarn instead of craft fur to create the beards for two of the gnomes, and that was a lot trickier. I had to cut and glue quite a few pieces onto the base so the beard was full enough, and then I had to unravel the yarn a bit. It looks a little like they have dreadlocks, but I think they're still cute.
When I started these snow globe ornaments (I made twelve total), I thought they looked too plain, but by the time I was done I really liked them.
I found packages of bottle brush trees at Target, and I painted white gesso on the edges of each tree to create the look of snowy branches. I glued a tree to the bottom of a plastic jar (from Michaels) and added the artificial snow. (Tip: I rubbed the inside of the jars with a drier sheet first to reduce the static electricity and help keep the snow from sticking to the jar.)
I tried making a hole in the lid so you could hang the snow globe, but that plan didn't work. So these are sitting ornaments instead. I decorated the top of the jar with patterned paper and card stock, and wrapped twine around the lid. I tied it off in a bow, added a piece of pompom trim and glued a whole star anise over the knot.
For these ornaments I bought the sign shapes (with the top string attached) and painted them white. I die cut the letters out of black card stock -- three pieces for each letter -- and glued them together. (This was the most time-consuming part.) I added a top layer to each letter cut out of black glimmer paper to give a little sparkle and glued the letters on the sign. I strung the felt bulbs on crochet thread and glued the ends to the back of the sign.
This is another sitting ornament. I found these tiny animals (called Good Luck Minis) at my local art supply store. I originally wanted to put them in the snow globes with the trees, but the scale wasn't quite right. I needed to add a lot of "snow" to the jars, and these little guys would have been totally buried.
So instead I created a mini woodland scene. I painted the top of a birch round with white gesso, glued on the tree (with painted branches) and animals, and then glued on a light layer of snow.
I made three of these ornaments, and I still have a few of the animals left, so I'll have to come up with another ornament design for them next year.
I hope you have a very happy Christmas filled with joy, peace, and moments to remember. Thanks for stopping by!
I didn't keep any supply lists, so leave me a comment if you have any questions.
I found a tutorial for these adorable gnome ornaments on the Ruffles & Rainboots blog, and I knew right away I wanted to make them. Their pretty easy to make, and once I got the hang of it, they came together pretty quickly. (My biggest issue was the strands of hot glue everywhere!) I did try using yarn instead of craft fur to create the beards for two of the gnomes, and that was a lot trickier. I had to cut and glue quite a few pieces onto the base so the beard was full enough, and then I had to unravel the yarn a bit. It looks a little like they have dreadlocks, but I think they're still cute.
When I started these snow globe ornaments (I made twelve total), I thought they looked too plain, but by the time I was done I really liked them.
I found packages of bottle brush trees at Target, and I painted white gesso on the edges of each tree to create the look of snowy branches. I glued a tree to the bottom of a plastic jar (from Michaels) and added the artificial snow. (Tip: I rubbed the inside of the jars with a drier sheet first to reduce the static electricity and help keep the snow from sticking to the jar.)
I tried making a hole in the lid so you could hang the snow globe, but that plan didn't work. So these are sitting ornaments instead. I decorated the top of the jar with patterned paper and card stock, and wrapped twine around the lid. I tied it off in a bow, added a piece of pompom trim and glued a whole star anise over the knot.
For these ornaments I bought the sign shapes (with the top string attached) and painted them white. I die cut the letters out of black card stock -- three pieces for each letter -- and glued them together. (This was the most time-consuming part.) I added a top layer to each letter cut out of black glimmer paper to give a little sparkle and glued the letters on the sign. I strung the felt bulbs on crochet thread and glued the ends to the back of the sign.
This is another sitting ornament. I found these tiny animals (called Good Luck Minis) at my local art supply store. I originally wanted to put them in the snow globes with the trees, but the scale wasn't quite right. I needed to add a lot of "snow" to the jars, and these little guys would have been totally buried.
So instead I created a mini woodland scene. I painted the top of a birch round with white gesso, glued on the tree (with painted branches) and animals, and then glued on a light layer of snow.
I made three of these ornaments, and I still have a few of the animals left, so I'll have to come up with another ornament design for them next year.
I hope you have a very happy Christmas filled with joy, peace, and moments to remember. Thanks for stopping by!
Saturday, December 21, 2019
Bold etched flowers
When I was in Iowa with my aunt back in October, we stopped at a fabulous scrapbooking/stamping store. There were so many amazing products that it was easy to get overwhelmed, so I focused my energy on the wall of stamps and dies. I found the Etched Flowers stamp set, from an Australian company called Darkroom Door, and new immediately that I had to get it. The stamp set includes three etched-type flower images and
four wonderful all-occasion sentiments in a font that looks handwritten.
Supplies:
Stamps: Etched Flowers (Darkroom Door)
Paper: Whisper White, thick Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Sea Glass, Tranquil Teal, Lucky Clover, Key Lime, Wild Dandelion (Gina K Designs); Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Shimmer mist (made with Shimmer Liquid Watercolor [Taylored Expressions] and alcohol), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
This card was so easy to make, but I think the blocks of bold color are really eye-catching. I chose one of the images in the set and started by stamping the light green image in the middle of a piece of white card stock. Then I just switched ink colors and continued stamping the surrounding images, staggering the top edge of the images. I just eyeballed the placement of the images, so they're not perfect, but I think that works just fine with the style of the stamp.
Once all the flowers were stamped, I added the sentiments using black ink. I love that these two sentiments could be used alone or combined, as I did here. I coated the whole panel with shimmer spray and then adhered it to a white card base. For a simple finishing touch I added a scattering of clear sequins that follows the sentiments from the top left to the bottom right.
Supplies:
Stamps: Etched Flowers (Darkroom Door)
Paper: Whisper White, thick Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Sea Glass (Gina K designs), Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Tim Holtz Mini Stencil Set 40 (Stampers Anonymous), blender brush (Picket Fence Studios), black and white twine (Stampin' Up!), black enamel dots (Eyelet Outlet), Large Stitched Rectangle Stackables dies (Lawn Fawn), foam tape (3M)
For this card I stamped the daisy image on white card stock using Sea Glass ink and then die cut it with a stitched rectangle die. I stamped the sentiment in black right over the flower and then set that piece aside.
I struggled with the background for this card and couldn't decide what to do. Finally I pulled out some stencils and used a blender brush and Sea Glass ink to create a circle/diamond pattern on part of the white card front. (I'm curious, which pattern do you see first? My eyes are initially drawn to the white circles, and then I see the blue diamonds.) It has a little more of a retro feel than I was going for, but it's a nice contrast to the focal image.
I wrapped some black and white twine around the card front a couple of times and tied it off in a bow. Using foam tape, I adhered the die-cut rectangle over the twine. I added a few black enamel dots to finish the card.
I think I'm finally getting caught up with my Christmas prep. I finished making ornaments today, so I'll post those soon (although it may not be until after Christmas ...), and I have all my cards and packages mailed. I'm waiting for a couple of things to arrive on Monday, and I've got some wrapping to do, but the end is in sight. I am looking forward to a little time to relax!
Thanks for stopping by!
Supplies:
Stamps: Etched Flowers (Darkroom Door)
Paper: Whisper White, thick Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Sea Glass, Tranquil Teal, Lucky Clover, Key Lime, Wild Dandelion (Gina K Designs); Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Shimmer mist (made with Shimmer Liquid Watercolor [Taylored Expressions] and alcohol), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
This card was so easy to make, but I think the blocks of bold color are really eye-catching. I chose one of the images in the set and started by stamping the light green image in the middle of a piece of white card stock. Then I just switched ink colors and continued stamping the surrounding images, staggering the top edge of the images. I just eyeballed the placement of the images, so they're not perfect, but I think that works just fine with the style of the stamp.
Once all the flowers were stamped, I added the sentiments using black ink. I love that these two sentiments could be used alone or combined, as I did here. I coated the whole panel with shimmer spray and then adhered it to a white card base. For a simple finishing touch I added a scattering of clear sequins that follows the sentiments from the top left to the bottom right.
Supplies:
Stamps: Etched Flowers (Darkroom Door)
Paper: Whisper White, thick Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Sea Glass (Gina K designs), Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Tim Holtz Mini Stencil Set 40 (Stampers Anonymous), blender brush (Picket Fence Studios), black and white twine (Stampin' Up!), black enamel dots (Eyelet Outlet), Large Stitched Rectangle Stackables dies (Lawn Fawn), foam tape (3M)
For this card I stamped the daisy image on white card stock using Sea Glass ink and then die cut it with a stitched rectangle die. I stamped the sentiment in black right over the flower and then set that piece aside.
I struggled with the background for this card and couldn't decide what to do. Finally I pulled out some stencils and used a blender brush and Sea Glass ink to create a circle/diamond pattern on part of the white card front. (I'm curious, which pattern do you see first? My eyes are initially drawn to the white circles, and then I see the blue diamonds.) It has a little more of a retro feel than I was going for, but it's a nice contrast to the focal image.
I wrapped some black and white twine around the card front a couple of times and tied it off in a bow. Using foam tape, I adhered the die-cut rectangle over the twine. I added a few black enamel dots to finish the card.
I think I'm finally getting caught up with my Christmas prep. I finished making ornaments today, so I'll post those soon (although it may not be until after Christmas ...), and I have all my cards and packages mailed. I'm waiting for a couple of things to arrive on Monday, and I've got some wrapping to do, but the end is in sight. I am looking forward to a little time to relax!
Thanks for stopping by!
Tuesday, December 17, 2019
Happy rainbow hearts
We're stuck smack dab in the middle of winter in my neck of the woods, which means there isn't much color to speak of outside. So looking at these two rainbow-y cards really makes my heart happy.
Supplies:
Stamps: Simple Strips Background (Taylored Expressions)
Paper: Crumb Cake, Basic Black, Whisper White, thick Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!); watercolor paper (Strathmore)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); watercolor inks: Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow, Lake Blue (Brea Reese)
Accessories: Hearts Entwined die (My Favorite Things), Simple Strips die (Taylored Expressions), shimmer mist (made with Shimmer Liquid Watercolor [Taylored Expressions] and rubbing alcohol), sparkling clear sequins and clear droplets (Pretty Pink Posh), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute), foam tape (3M)
I love, love how these cards turned out, and they are among some of my all-time favorites. The starting point for them was a kit that contained a few Brea Reese watercolor inks. There were three colors in the kit -- Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow, and Lake Blue -- and I wanted to experiment with making them into a rainbow.
I cut a piece of watercolor paper to the size of my card front and spritzed it with water. Then, holding the paper vertically and resting the bottom edge (one of the long sides) on a paper towel, I squeezed some red ink along the left portion of the top edge. As the red ink ran down the paper, I added yellow near the middle, overlapping some of the red. I continued by adding blue, overlapping part of the yellow, and finally added a bit of red at the right side to combine with the blue and make purple. As the colors spread and blended, they made this gorgeous rainbow. (Hint: If needed, spritz on more water to help the colors blend. And you can tip the paper different directions to encourage the blending a bit)
Once that panel was dry, I die cut it with the Hearts Entwined die, making sure I saved all the little bits that fall out of the middle of the hearts. I adhered the border piece to a heavy white card base. Then I die cut the hearts again out of black card stock and glued the black heart outline into the "frame" on the card base. Then I glued all those little pieces back inside the black hearts. For the second card, I simply glued the die-cut rainbow hearts onto a Crumb Cake card base.
I embellished both cards with clear accents (droplets or sequins) and added a sentiment made near the bottom of the die-cut hearts. You can't see it in this photo, but I also added some shimmer mist. I made my own in a little mister bottle; I just filled the bottle about 1/4 full with Shimmer Liquid Watercolor and the rest with rubbing alcohol. It is the most gorgeous mist ever (but I do think I need to unclog my mister now).
Thanks for stopping by today! May your heart always be happy!
Supplies:
Stamps: Simple Strips Background (Taylored Expressions)
Paper: Crumb Cake, Basic Black, Whisper White, thick Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!); watercolor paper (Strathmore)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); watercolor inks: Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow, Lake Blue (Brea Reese)
Accessories: Hearts Entwined die (My Favorite Things), Simple Strips die (Taylored Expressions), shimmer mist (made with Shimmer Liquid Watercolor [Taylored Expressions] and rubbing alcohol), sparkling clear sequins and clear droplets (Pretty Pink Posh), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute), foam tape (3M)
I love, love how these cards turned out, and they are among some of my all-time favorites. The starting point for them was a kit that contained a few Brea Reese watercolor inks. There were three colors in the kit -- Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow, and Lake Blue -- and I wanted to experiment with making them into a rainbow.
I cut a piece of watercolor paper to the size of my card front and spritzed it with water. Then, holding the paper vertically and resting the bottom edge (one of the long sides) on a paper towel, I squeezed some red ink along the left portion of the top edge. As the red ink ran down the paper, I added yellow near the middle, overlapping some of the red. I continued by adding blue, overlapping part of the yellow, and finally added a bit of red at the right side to combine with the blue and make purple. As the colors spread and blended, they made this gorgeous rainbow. (Hint: If needed, spritz on more water to help the colors blend. And you can tip the paper different directions to encourage the blending a bit)
Once that panel was dry, I die cut it with the Hearts Entwined die, making sure I saved all the little bits that fall out of the middle of the hearts. I adhered the border piece to a heavy white card base. Then I die cut the hearts again out of black card stock and glued the black heart outline into the "frame" on the card base. Then I glued all those little pieces back inside the black hearts. For the second card, I simply glued the die-cut rainbow hearts onto a Crumb Cake card base.
I embellished both cards with clear accents (droplets or sequins) and added a sentiment made near the bottom of the die-cut hearts. You can't see it in this photo, but I also added some shimmer mist. I made my own in a little mister bottle; I just filled the bottle about 1/4 full with Shimmer Liquid Watercolor and the rest with rubbing alcohol. It is the most gorgeous mist ever (but I do think I need to unclog my mister now).
Thanks for stopping by today! May your heart always be happy!
Saturday, December 14, 2019
Colored pencil flowers
Last month I participated in the 30-Day Coloring Challenge with the goal to color a little bit each day. Well, I didn't quite make it through the whole challenge (I think I got through the Nov. 20 or so), but I did color more than I usually do, so I consider that a success. I even put together a little coloring bag for work and colored during my break on a few days. Some days I worked on a page in a coloring book, but other days I focused on coloring stamped images that I could turn into cards. Here are the first few of those cards:
Supplies:
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black Bermuda Bay card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Powder Pink (Stampin' Up!); colored pencils: PC928, PC930, PC942, PC1002, PC992, PC1027 (Prismacolor)
Accessories: Scattered Floral stencil (Taylored Expressions), blender brush (Picket Fence Studios), "smile" and "hello" dies (Gina K Designs), black enamel dots (Eyelet Outlet), gamsol blending kit (Taylored Expressions), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
This was my coloring from the first day of the challenge, and it was a new technique, too. Kathy Racoosin explained the technique in her first blog post for the challenge, but basically it's no-line coloring with a stencil instead of a stamp.
I used a blender brush to apply very light pink ink over a floral-patterned stencil. This part was a little tricky because the ink is so light it's hard to tell if you're covering the stencil. (If you want to check, hold the stencil firmly in place and carefully lift up one corner to peek at your card stock.) Once that was done, I used colored pencils to color over the lightly inked flowers.
I chose pink, yellow, and blue to color the flowers and used gamsol to blend them and soften the pencil lines. Then I used darker accent colors to add centers to the flowers. Once all the coloring was done, I cut the panel in half, mounted each piece on black card stock and adhered them to Bermuda Bay card bases. To add the sentiments, I die-cut each word a few times from black card stock, glued them together and adhered them to the cards. One black enamel dot was the finishing touch for each card.
Supplies:
Stamps: Cosmos Background (Simon Says Stamp), Simple Strips Background (Taylored Expressions)
Paper: Lovely Lipstick, Basic Black, Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, VersaMark (Tsukineko); colored pencils: PC911, PC921, PC929, PC930, PC942, blender pencil (Prismacolor)
Accessories: Simple Strips die (Taylored Expressions), white embossing powder (Hero Arts), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), foam tape (3M), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
These cards have the same layout as the first pair, but this time I used a stamped background. I colored each flower in the image with one pencil, applying light color to the whole flower and using more pressure to add the darker details. I blended the colors with a blender pencils and, if needed, added more dark strokes. Then I cut the image in half, mounted the pieces on black card stock, and adhered them to Lovely Lipstick card bases. For the sentiments on these cards I used embossed sentiment strips, and I added a few clear sequins for a subtle embellishment.
If you're interested in participating in a coloring challenge, there's another one coming up in February. I encourage you to try it out; you don't have to officially sign up or anything, so you could even just follow along on the blog or Instagram and do your own coloring when you can. I don't often do a lot of coloring when I'm making cards, so it was fun to focus on that a little bit. And I ended up with at least a dozen cards with the images I colored (I'll be sharing them all on my blog)!
Thanks for stopping by today! I mentioned in my last post that I was going to be sharing some Christmas ornaments. I did make some yesterday, but I'm not quite finished yet -- and I need to get better pictures in the daylight -- so they're still to come.
Supplies:
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black Bermuda Bay card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Powder Pink (Stampin' Up!); colored pencils: PC928, PC930, PC942, PC1002, PC992, PC1027 (Prismacolor)
Accessories: Scattered Floral stencil (Taylored Expressions), blender brush (Picket Fence Studios), "smile" and "hello" dies (Gina K Designs), black enamel dots (Eyelet Outlet), gamsol blending kit (Taylored Expressions), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
This was my coloring from the first day of the challenge, and it was a new technique, too. Kathy Racoosin explained the technique in her first blog post for the challenge, but basically it's no-line coloring with a stencil instead of a stamp.
I used a blender brush to apply very light pink ink over a floral-patterned stencil. This part was a little tricky because the ink is so light it's hard to tell if you're covering the stencil. (If you want to check, hold the stencil firmly in place and carefully lift up one corner to peek at your card stock.) Once that was done, I used colored pencils to color over the lightly inked flowers.
I chose pink, yellow, and blue to color the flowers and used gamsol to blend them and soften the pencil lines. Then I used darker accent colors to add centers to the flowers. Once all the coloring was done, I cut the panel in half, mounted each piece on black card stock and adhered them to Bermuda Bay card bases. To add the sentiments, I die-cut each word a few times from black card stock, glued them together and adhered them to the cards. One black enamel dot was the finishing touch for each card.
Supplies:
Stamps: Cosmos Background (Simon Says Stamp), Simple Strips Background (Taylored Expressions)
Paper: Lovely Lipstick, Basic Black, Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, VersaMark (Tsukineko); colored pencils: PC911, PC921, PC929, PC930, PC942, blender pencil (Prismacolor)
Accessories: Simple Strips die (Taylored Expressions), white embossing powder (Hero Arts), sparkling clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), foam tape (3M), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)
These cards have the same layout as the first pair, but this time I used a stamped background. I colored each flower in the image with one pencil, applying light color to the whole flower and using more pressure to add the darker details. I blended the colors with a blender pencils and, if needed, added more dark strokes. Then I cut the image in half, mounted the pieces on black card stock, and adhered them to Lovely Lipstick card bases. For the sentiments on these cards I used embossed sentiment strips, and I added a few clear sequins for a subtle embellishment.
If you're interested in participating in a coloring challenge, there's another one coming up in February. I encourage you to try it out; you don't have to officially sign up or anything, so you could even just follow along on the blog or Instagram and do your own coloring when you can. I don't often do a lot of coloring when I'm making cards, so it was fun to focus on that a little bit. And I ended up with at least a dozen cards with the images I colored (I'll be sharing them all on my blog)!
Thanks for stopping by today! I mentioned in my last post that I was going to be sharing some Christmas ornaments. I did make some yesterday, but I'm not quite finished yet -- and I need to get better pictures in the daylight -- so they're still to come.
Sunday, December 8, 2019
Recap of 2019 Christmas cards
Well, my December blogging is off to a slow start. I can't believe I completely missed last week. This holiday season seems busier than most, and I'm a little overwhelmed with all the things left to do. (Or maybe every year seems this way, and I just forget once the holidays are over.) But I'll try to get back on track this week, and I'm starting with a quick recap of all my 2019 holiday card designs. (Click on each photo below to see a larger version. Or click on the title to go to the full blog post.)
January: Mod flower
February: Festive wreath
March: Winter songbird
April: Penguin shaker
May: Retro colorful trees
June: Over the river
July: Winter cardinal
August: Simple and traditional
September: Ho Ho Postage
October: Retro sparkles
November: Caring Hearts Card Drive
Holiday treat packages
I hope you found a little inspiration in these cards, either for this year (it's not too late to create and send some handmade cards!) or to tuck away for next year.
I'm going to try making some Christmas ornaments tonight, so I hope to share those soon. Thanks for stopping by!
January: Mod flower
February: Festive wreath
March: Winter songbird
April: Penguin shaker
May: Retro colorful trees
June: Over the river
July: Winter cardinal
August: Simple and traditional
September: Ho Ho Postage
October: Retro sparkles
November: Caring Hearts Card Drive
Holiday treat packages
I hope you found a little inspiration in these cards, either for this year (it's not too late to create and send some handmade cards!) or to tuck away for next year.
I'm going to try making some Christmas ornaments tonight, so I hope to share those soon. Thanks for stopping by!