HEY FRIENDS! A little change of pace today – I’m currently a guest designer for AALL & Create so today I’m showing you my latest project using The Gardener stamp set. I love these quirky characters by Janet Klein and they’re a lot of fun to color.
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This is another project that just evolved. I knew that I would do an ink smooshed background so I grabbed a scrap of watercolor paper. It happened that my scrap was Arches Cold Press Watercolor Paper so that’s what I used, but you can use Canson XL or Canson Montval if you want a less pricy option (I’ve linked all the papers below).
I pulled out a selection of Catherine Pooler Inks to create a rainbow — Tiara, Tutti Frutti, Be Mine, Pixie Dust, Blue Fiesta, and Lime Rickey — as well as piece of acetate (I used the packaging from a stamp set). Next, I smooshed the ink on the acetate, spritzed it with water using a Distress Sprayer, and then lightly smooshed the acetate on the watercolor paper. I dried the ink with a heat tool and then moved onto the next color. Afterwards, I set aside the background to fully dry.
[Compensated affiliate links used when possible. In addition, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Items marked with an asterisk (*) were provided by a store or the manufacturer. All other items were personally purchased.]
HEY FRIENDS! As many of you know, I was recently asked to be a guest designer for AALL and Create, a fun and quirky mixed media company based in England. You might recognize the images of one of their designers, Janet Klein, who has her own line of digital stamps at Vera Lane Studio on Etsy. I love her images so today’s project uses her Look Cute stamp as the focal point.
This card has a little bit of everything – stenciling, stamping, heat embossing, Copic marker coloring, texture paste, and die cutting. I was feeling uninspired so while scrolling through my YouTube feed I came across a video of @autourmwa on Hochanda. I was fascinated. He made mixed media look so effortless. So I surrounded myself with my stash and got to work! Once the first layer was in place, the rest came together, resulting in the eclectic, quirky look that I wanted.
As always, I’ve linked the supplies below with compensated affiliate links used where possible at no cost to you.
Randomly spread Texture Paste through the stencil using a palette knife. Lift the stencil and clean the stencil and the palette knife immediately. They are much harder to clean if you allow the texture paste to dry.
Stamp the #300 Look Cute image on Hammermill # 100 Paper using a Copic compatible ink (I used Hero Arts Intense Black). See list below for Copic markers. When finished, fussy cut the image and apply foam adhesive squares or foam tape on the back.
Cut the #12 Code die twice from white cardstock. Glue the two layers together using a glue that dries clear (I used Art Glitter Glue).
Assemble layers as shown.
Hope you enjoyed today’s project. See you again soon!
[Compensated affiliate links used when possible. In addition, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Items marked with an asterisk (*) were provided by a store or the manufacturer. All other items were personally purchased.]
GOOD MORNING FRIENDS! I’m back today with a card featuring several products from Pinkfresh Studio, including the Floral Notes stencil and coordinating die. This stencil is actually intended for a slimline card, but you’ll see that with a little crafty surgery, I was able to create an A2 card instead. As always, I’ve linked the supplies below with compensated affiliate links used where possible at no cost to you.
This card had lots of moving parts, but never fear! I’ve provided detailed directions and illustrations below to guide you each step of the way.
Cut the Braided Oval Die from a piece of white cardstock. Set aside.
Cut the Stitches Die from a piece of white cardstock. Ink blend on the long edges, first with Distress Oxides in Chipped Sapphire blending to Tumbled Glass. The center of the diecut remains white as an accent. Set aside until ready to assemble layers.
Apply foam tape to back of oval die cut, stenciled image pieces, and sentiments.
Assemble layers as shown.
Cutting the Image
Since I wanted to create an A2 card, I had to cut the stenciled image to fit. See images below to see how I divided the image to fit my design.
IMAGE 1: Stenciled image trimmed with coordinating die.IMAGE 2: Stenciled image after separation.
Note on Perfect Sentiments Stamp
This stamp is actually 11 different sentiments as one stamp – in other words, you’ll stamp all the sentiments at the same time on a single sheet of cardstock. The coordinating die then creates the separate sentiments. This is a case where buying both the stamp and the die is more efficient for card production. In lieu of the die, you could probably either fussy cut or use a Cricut or Scan ‘n’ Cut to separate the sentiments although I didn’t try either method since I already had the die.
Notes on Tools
For inkblending and stenciling, I used the Blender Brushes from Taylored Expressions. I prefer this set of blender brushes simply for the color coded handles so that I have a specific brush for each color family.
I used Foam Sticky Strips from Taylored Expressions to adhere the sentiments and the stenciled flowers in place.
Hope you enjoyed today’ project! See you again soon!
Supplies
[Compensated affiliate links used when possible. In addition, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Items marked with an asterisk (*) were provided by a store or the manufacturer. All other items were personally purchased.]
HEY FRIENDS! My Favorite Things has opened the vault again to re-release a few of the older Birdie Brown stamp sets. If you’ve been looking for a retired Birdie Brown stamp, then now’s the time to check out the current release. One of my favorites — BB Jingle All the Way — is included this time so I created a card to inspire you. As always, I’ve linked the supplies below with compensated affiliate links used where possible at no cost to you.
Trim one of the diagonal patterned sheets from the Very Merry Paper Pad by My Favorite Things to 4.25″ x 5.5″
Cut a piece of white cardstock to 3.75″ x 5″
Position the Sending Christmas Joy Die-namics on top of the white cardstock and run through your die cutting machine. Remove the cut out letters and set aside for another project.
Select scraps of coordinating colored cardstock to create the letters. I used cardstock by MFT Stamps in Moroccan Spice, Sour Apple, and Field Day. Position the scraps so that each line of the Sending Christmas Joy die will cut the letters in a different color. Run scraps and die through your die cutting machine.
Color image with Copic markers (see video & marker list below).
Either fussy cut image or trim with coordinating Jingle All the Way Die-namics.
Apply foam squares to the back of the image.
Assemble layers as shown.
Copic Coloring Video
A few months ago, I created a Copic coloring video for this image which I’ve included below so that you can see how I colored the image in more detail. You can see that card HERE.
I have a soft spot for this stamp set because I featured it in one of my first classes when I started teaching. So it helped to launch me on my way as a Copic instructor.
Hope you enjoyed today’s project! See you again soon!
[Compensated affiliate links used when possible. In addition, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Items marked with an asterisk (*) were provided by a store or the manufacturer. All other items were personally purchased.]
GOOD MORNING FRIENDS! So I’m back today with something a little different for me. Yes – I’m still making holiday cards – afterall, it is Christmas in July — but I tried my hand at slimline holiday cards.
I was asked by Scrapbook.com to make a few cards featuring their exclusive papers, stamps, and other supplies. Their Christmas in July Sale is going on now with thousands of items up to 50% off! So it’s a great time to start planning your holiday cards and stock up on supplies.
I have three cards for you today featuring products that I received from Scrapbook.com (items marked with an asterick) as well as products that I purchased personally. As always, I’ve linked the supplies below with compensated affiliate links used where possible at no cost to you.
I cut a piece of white cardstock to 8.25″ x 3.25″ and set it aside until it was time to assemble the layers. On the far right side, I stamped two of the images from the Wordfetti – Holly Jolly stamp set in Cardinal Red Hybrid Ink using my Misti. Leaving the stamps in place, I stamped the images again using Versamark ink, covered the images with clear embossing powder, and heat set the images.
For the sentiment, I used the “Merry Christmas” sentiment from the Merry Sentiments stamp set. I just wanted the word “merry” so I cut the stamp so that I would just have the one word (gasp!). I lined it up using my Misti and inked it with Cardinal Red Hybrid Ink. Again, I stamped the image using Versamark ink, covered the image with clear embossing powder, and heat set it.
After the embossing paste was dry, I trimmed the stenciled panel to 3″ x 6.75″ and assembled the layers as shown using *1/4″ Double Sided Tape. For the sentiment, I used the Merry Christmas Sentiments Die Set to cut the word “Christmas” from a piece of red foil cardstock and adhered it to the front of the card.
For Card 2, I cut a piece of Neenah 110# cardstock to 8.5″ x 7″ scored at 3.5″ as the card base. I adhered a piece of gray cardstock from the *Smooth Cardstock Paper Pad – Slimline – Christmas to the card base using *1/4″ Double Sided Tape. I cut a piece of white cardstock to 8.25″ x 3.25″ and set it aside until it was time to assemble the layers.
Card 3 was actually the first card that I made. Since it was my first time creating a slimline card, I had to get used to the proportions and layout. Again, I cut a piece of Neenah 110# cardstock to 8.5″ x 7″ scored at 3.5″ as the card base and adhered a piece of dark green cardstock from the *Smooth Cardstock Paper Pad – Slimline – Christmas to the card base using *1/4″ Double Sided Tape.
I cut a piece of white cardstock to 8.25″ x 3.25″ and set it aside until it was time to assemble the layers. I selected a piece of green cardstock from the paper pad and trimmed it to 3″ x 8″ and secured it to my craft mat with repositionable tape. I centered the Vintage Floral Stencil and secured it to my craft mat with Mint Low Tack Tape. Then I used a blending brush to lightly stencil the pattern with *Pine Premium Hybrid Ink.
Since red and green are complementary colors, you can use green under red (and red under green) to deepen the color. That’s how I created two shades of red and two shades of green using only one ink pad in each color.
I apply clear embossing powder on die cuts to get a dimensional glossy finish. I find this much easier than using Glossy Accents or a similar products. And there’s no lengthy drying time which is an added benefit!
That all from me today! Hope you enjoyed today’s projects! A special thanks to Scrapbook.com for supplying some of the featured products!
SUPPLIES
[Compensated affiliate links used when possible. In addition, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Items marked with an asterisk (*) were provided by a store or the manufacturer. All other items were personally purchased.]
