Category: Altenew

Rowhouse Greetings | Persian Motifs by Altenew

Persian Motifs Stamp Set by Altenew

Published on by Rowhouse Greetings1 Comment

GOOD MORNING FRIENDS! Just a quick post today. It’s Sunday morning and I’m trying to regain some order in my house. Next month we’re having built in cabinetry and closets installed in our second bedroom so this house will finally have some storage and THREE new closets. Woo-hoo!

But in the meantime, we need to pare down our belongings, paint the room, break down and move out the existing wardrobes and all the other stuff that you do to prepare for home renovations. Luckily, there will be a craft yard sale at Photo Scraps on Sunday, October 18 from 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM where yours truly will have a table. I’ll be selling gently loved stamps, dies, storage containers and my spare IKEA Raskog cart. The yard sale will be held out in the parking lot so bring your mask and hand sanitizer. And shop early for the best deals!

So back to the project at hand! When I was looking through my stamps, I came across the Altenew Persian Motif stamp set that has been languishing in my stash. So I pulled out a water brush and some distress inks and got to work. I’ve linked the supplies for today’s project with compensated affiliate links used where possible at no cost to you.

Today’s project features:

  • Persian Motifs by Altenew [SC | AN]
  • Good Wishes by Penny Black [SC]
  • Heat embossing and water coloring with Distress Inks
  • Additional basic supplies linked in thumbnails below

Step by Step for Persian Motifs

  • Cut card base from heavy weight white cardstock to 4.25″ x 11″ and score at 5.5″ for a top fold card.
  • Cut dark gray card stock to 4.25″ x 5.5″
  • Trim watercolor paper to 4″ x 5.25″
  • Stamp image on watercolor paper using clear embossing ink.
  • Immediately cover with clear embossing powder and heat set.
  • Smoosh each color of Distress Ink — Twisted Citron, Peeled Paint, Tattered Rose, Worn Lipstick, and Picked Raspberry — on craft mat.
  • For leaves, pick up a small amount of Twisted Citron on a water brush and base coat stems and leaves. Allow ink to dry.
  • Pick up a small amount of Peeled Paint on brush and apply to deepen base of leaves and stems.
  • Reapply both colors as necessary to achieve the desired shades.
  • For petals, pick up a small amount of Tattered Rose to base coat petals.
  • Pick up a small amount of Worn Lipstick on brush and apply to deepen base of petals and areas where petals overlap.
  • Pick up a small amount of Picked Raspberry on brush and apply to the deepest areas of petals.
  • Reapply colors as necessary to achieve desired shades.
  • Allow ink to dry.
  • Stamp sentiment with gray pigment ink and immediately cover with clear embossing powder. Heat set sentiment.
  • Apply craft foam to back of image with a strong craft glue.
  • Glue gray card stock to card base.
  • Glue image to center of card as show.
  • Add dewdrops, sequins or other embellishments as desired using a clear drying craft glue.
Rowhouse Greetings | Persian Motifs by Altenew

That’s all for me today! See you soon!

Rowhouse Greetings | Nancy Sheads

Supplies

Below I’ve listed the products used for today’s project. Compensated affiliate links used at no cost to you (see disclosure). I pay out of pocket for the majority of the products — papers, inks, dies, embellishments, etc. —  that you see in my projects with the exception of the handful of products that I receive for design team work or guest posts. I only use products that I love. If you like my projects, please consider supporting me by clicking through these links when you shop. Thanks so much!

AECP – Clean and Simple Boutique Cards

Published on by Rowhouse Greetings6 Comments

GOOD MORNING FRIENDS! I’m back today with a card featuring the Beautiful Lady stamp set by Altenew. I’ve had this stamp for awhile and this is the second time that I’ve colored it. The first time, I colored it with distress inks so I decided to try it again with my Copic markers.

Rowhouse Greetings | Beautiful Lady by Altenew

I wasn’t quite sure where I was going with the design so I just let it evolve along the way. I started by stamping with Amalgam Ink and coloring the image with Copic markers. Originally, I planned a one layer card, but decided that I wanted more dimension so I fussy cut the image. Yes – I did it by hand. It was late at night and I didn’t feel like pulling out my Scan and Cut!

I originally planned a portrait orientation for my card, but after the image was cut, I realized that I could make better use of white space if I used a landscape orientation. I stamped the sentiment (from the Beautiful Day stamp set by Altenew) and adhered the image with foam squares, trimming the stem where it extended beyond my card. I finished it off by adding a few sequins and dewdrops.

Today’s card was inspired by the Clean & Simple Boutique Cards class by Altenew Academy. You can find out more about this class and many more at the Altenew Academy.

Hope you got some inspiration. Thanks for stopping by and I’ll see you again soon!

Disclosure: Below are the supplies I’ve used for today’s project. All items were personally purchased except those marked with an asterisk (*) which were provided by a store or design team. I never share a product I do not like. All opinions are my own. Read more.

Where available I use compensated affiliate links, meaning that at no cost to you I receive a commission if you click through and make a purchase. I use this money to support my blog. If you like my projects, please consider supporting me by clicking through these links when you shop. Thanks so much! Read more.

Supplies

Paper: Neenah Solar White 80# & 110#; X-Press It Blending Card by Copic
Stamps: Beautiful Lady by Altenew; Beautiful Day by Altenew
Inks: Amalgam Ink in Jet Black by Gina K. Designs; Versafine in Onyx Black by Tsukineko
Dies: Small Stitched Rectangle Stackables by Lawn Fawn; Scalloped Rectangles by Lawn Fawn
Embellishments: Sequins in Mixed Berries by 28 Lilac Lane; Dahlia Dewdrops (retired) by Honey Bee Stamps
Copics: G20, G21, G24, G28 (leaves); BV31, BV34, B66, V01, V04, V06 (flowers)

Rowhouse Greetings | You Make Me Happy by Altenew

AECP – Easy Ink Blending Techniques

Published on by Rowhouse Greetings4 Comments

GOOD EVENING FRIENDS! It’s been a beautiful day here in Maryland – temperatures in the 60s, a slight breeze, and lots of sunshine. The windows are wide open and the cats have been sunning themselves all day during their numerous naps. I stopped at a nursery earlier today and looked longingly at the spring flowers, but decided to hold off. I suspect that it’s still too soon to plant the flower boxes in front of the house, but the pansies were really tempting.

I’ve been working on organizing my craft supplies. When you live in a small house built before the invention of closets, organization is a serious challenge. I stopped at Dick Blick this afternoon and purchased a couple of Artbin containers for my Distress Inks, so for the moment they are suitably contained. But I put organization aside for awhile because I really wanted to get in some crafting time today. I’m a participant in the Altenew Educator Certification Program, but I’ve fallen behind for any number of reasons. So this afternoon, I turned off the phone, cleared off a spot on the dining room table, and got to work on a card to complete the Easy Ink Blending Techniques Class.

To create my card, I started with a panel of Neenah 80# cardstock and using my Misti, I stamped the floral image from the You Make Me Happy stamp set in a pale ink. I did this so that I would know where the embossed image would ultimately be placed. I also stamped the floral image a second time on masking paper and fussy cut the image. I placed the mask over the stamped image.

Using Purple Tape, I masked off the edges of the cardstock so that I could create an central focal point. Using the grid on my craft mat, I was able to make sure that the margins on each side were equal and the lines were straight.

Next I started ink blending the background, starting with the lighter colors first. In the bottom left corner, I blended Twisted Citron first and then added Tumbled Glass from the opposite corner. I deepened each corner with Mowed Lawn and Salty Ocean.

I removed all the masking for the initial reveal. I placed the panel back into my Misti and restamped the image with Versamark. I covered the ink with gold embossing powder and heat set the image. Then I stamped the sentiment from the Wish Big stamp set with Versafine in Onyx Black. I quickly covered the ink with clear embossing powder and heat set the sentiment.

Prior to assembling my card, I cut the panel with the a die from the Postal Stamp Rectangles set by Elizabeth Craft Designs. I glued a piece of craft foam to the back of the panel to dimension before adhering it to a panel of design paper and the card base. As a finishing touch, I scattered some sequins in a slightly studied and somewhat random manner. I’m still working on the random thing!

Hope you got some inspiration. Thanks for stopping by and I’ll see you again soon!

Disclosure: Below are the supplies I’ve used for today’s project. All items were personally purchased except those marked with an asterisk (*) which were provided by a store or design team. I never share a product I do not like. All opinions are my own. Read more.

Where available I use compensated affiliate links, meaning that at no cost to you I receive a commission if you click through and make a purchase. I use this money to support my blog. If you like my projects, please consider supporting me by clicking through these links when you shop. Thanks so much! Read more.

Supplies

Paper: Neenah Solar White 80# & 110#
Stamps: You Make Me Happy by Altenew; Wish Big by Altenew
Inks: Versamark by Tsukineko; Distress Inks in Mowed Lawn, Twisted Citron, Tumbled Glass, Salty Ocean
Dies: Postage Stamp Rectangles by Elizabeth Craft Designs
Embellishments: Super Fine Embossing Power in Gold by Ranger; Fine Detail Embossing Powder in Clear by Nuvo; Sequins in Not So Heavy Metal by 28 Lilac Lane.

Rowhouse Greetings | Happy by Altenew

Just So Happy for You featuring Altenew

Published on by Rowhouse Greetings3 Comments

I’m back today with my latest project for the Altenew Educator Certification Program to complete the Impressive Heat Embossing Class.

I usually make a big mess when I add embossing powder to my cards. I often forget to use an anti-static tool before stamping the embossing ink so I usually end up with stray bits of embossing powder all over my image. I’ve been experimenting more and more with using clear embossing powder over colored ink to get the crisp and clean results that I prefer. The added benefit is that it extends the use of my growing collection of inks.

Rowhouse Greetings | Persian Motifs by Altenew

For this card, I used a scallop die to cut a piece of 80# Neenah card stock. I placed the shaped card stock in my Misti and arranged several stamps from the Persian Motifs stamp set along the edge. I stamped the image several times using Delicata Ink in Golden Glitz, covered the stamped image with clear embossing powder, and heat set the powder. Delicata is one of my favorite inks and the result is a crisp outline when combined with heat embossing. Any stray bits of embossing powder disappear on the white background so I can look like an embossing pro instead of the usual klutz that I am with colored embossing powder.

Rowhouse Greetings | Persian Motifs by Altenew

I cut the sentiment three times from 80# Neenah card stock, stacking and gluing two of the pieces together. For the third, I blended the die cut with Altenew Crisp Die Ink. Then I stamped the sentiment with my embossing ink pad and covered it with clear embossing powder. After heat setting the sentiment, I glued it to the previous stack, offsetting it slightly to add dimension. I stamped the remaining sentiments in black ink and glued the die cut sentiment in place. It still felt like something was missing so I added a few colored dew drops to complete my card.

So that’s all from me for now. What’s on your craft table today?

Disclosure: Below are the supplies I’ve used for today’s project. All items were personally purchased except those marked with an asterisk (*) which were provided by a store or design team. I never share a product I do not like. All opinions are my own. Read more.

Where available I use compensated affiliate links, meaning that at no cost to you I receive a commission if you click through and make a purchase. I use this money to support my blog. If you like my projects, please consider supporting me by clicking through these links when you shop. Thanks so much! Read more.

Supplies

Paper: Neenah Solar White 110#; Neenah Solar White 80#
Stamps: Persian Motifs by Altenew; Halftone Happy by Altenew
Dies: Happy Die by Altenew; Scalloped Rectangle Stackables by Lawn Fawn
Inks: Altenew Crisp Dye Ink in Caribbean Sky; Delicata in Golden Glitz, Verafine in Onyx Black, Versamark, all by Tsukineko
Embellishments: Nuvo Embossing Powder in Clear; Honey Dew Drops by Honey Bee Stamps

Rowhouse Greetings | Leaf Burst Stencil by Altenew

Leaf Burst Stencil by Altenew

Published on by Rowhouse Greetings6 Comments

Good morning friends! I’m off to a rocky start today. I just broke my glasses so everything is a little blurry right now. So please excuse any typos! Hopefully my project photo is in focus!

I’m back today with my first project for the Altenew Educator Certification Program Level I classes. This project is based on a variation of Lesson Two in the Celebration: Stencil Techniques class. My project features Altenew’s Leaf Burst Stencil and Halftone Hello stamp and die set. I began by stenciling the leaf design on watercolor paper with Distress Inks. Then I applied transparent glossy embossing paste through the stencil which slightly mutes the colors of the Distress Ink. I purposely offset the sentiment and die cut to the right so that they would not distract from the central part of the stenciled design.

I’m not quite ready to let go of warm weather so I decided to use lighter spring colors instead of the golds, browns, and oranges that characterize fall. Besides, this is one of my favorite Distress Ink combinations. I also love using embossing paste for the extra texture and dimension it adds to a card design.

Rowhouse Greetings | Leaf Burst Stencil by Altenew

To create the stenciled image:

  1. Cut a piece of watercolor paper to 4 inches x 5.25 inches.
  2. Tape the Leaf Burst Stencil to the watercolor paper, offset to the left.
  3. Working from the center outward, blend Distress Inks through the stencil in the following order: Salty Ocean, Cracked Pistachio, Shabby Shutters, and Mowed Lawn.
  4. With the stencil still in place, apply an even coat of Ranger Texture Paste (transparent gloss) with a palette knife. The texture paste will appear milky in color but will dry clear and glossy.
  5. Carefully remove the stencil. Rinse the stencil and palette knife to remove any remaining texture paste.
  6. Set the stenciled image to the side to dry for at least 30 minutes.
Rowhouse Greetings | Leaf Burst Stencil by Altenew

To create the sentiment:

  1. Cut a piece of vellum 5/8 inch x 5 inches.
  2. Stamp the sentiment on the vellum using Ranger Archival Ink. Allow to dry.
  3. Stamp the Hello image using Ranger Archival Ink. Cover with clear embossing powder and heat set.
  4. Die cut the Hello image and glue to vellum strip.

To complete the card:

  1. Adhere vellum strip with sentiments to card, wrapping edges of vellum around the edges of card.
  2. Glue a piece of craft foam (cut to 3.75 inches x 5 inches) to the back of the stenciled image. I use craft foam rather than foam tape because it provides even support across the entire card.
  3. Glue image layer to a top folding card base.

That’s all for today. Thanks so much for stopping by. Hope you find some inspiration in the simplicity of this project.

Disclosure: Below are the supplies I’ve used for today’s project. All items were personally purchased except those marked with an asterisk (*) which were provided by a store or design team. I never share a product I do not like. All opinions are my own. Read more.

Where available I use compensated affiliate links, meaning that at no cost to you I receive a commission if you click through and make a purchase. I use this money to support my blog. If you like my projects, please consider supporting me by clicking through these links when you shop. Thanks so much! Read more.

Supplies

Paper: Neenah Solar White 110#; Canson 140# Watercolor Paper; White Vellum by Bazzill
Stamp: Halftone Hello by Altenew
Die: Halftone Hello Die by Altenew
Stencil: Leaf Burst Stencil by Altenew
Inks: Distress Inks in Salty Ocean, Cracked Pistachio, Shabby Shutters, Mowed Lawn; Ranger Archival Ink in Jet Black
Embellishments: Ranger Texture Paste – Transparent Gloss