Bachelor Buttons

Just killing time today.  Background paper is Butcher Block that I've had forever!  Background stamp is Inadinkado wood.  Bachelor Button is Hero Arts cling.  The adornments are from Quikkutz.  Punch used is EK Success.  Flower is colored with Copic B00 and B15.  Background and floral stamped with Memento Cocoa.  Background inked with Tea Dye and Stormy Sky.

More Little People

This is the second set of stamps that I got recently from icopics.com .  They are OA Buddies from The Greeting Farm.  It took several tries to get it right.  I wonder if all the people that do the fantastic coloring that I see had to go through as much trial and error, or does it come just naturally?

The paper is DCWV stack, punch is EK, die cut Spellbinders.

I love the red/yellow combo, it is just so bright and cheerful.  I think it is psychological because my mother would never let me wear red and yellow together, she said it clashed!  Well, actually I would never 'wear' it together now, but my little kiddies can.  :)   Flower die cut is Sizzix, labels Spellbinders, punch EK.  Paper is from old stash.

Copic coloring

I've really been struggling with my coloring.  I just have to remember that it will get better with practice.  I think the brunnette came out a little better than the blonde.  The brunnette is C.C. Designs Swiss Pixies "Bouquet Birgitta".  Paper is DCWV glitter stack, flowers are from Oriental Trading.  Die cut is Sizzix, border EK Success.

I was inspired by the flower color combo of red and blue and tried to match it with the ink colors and background.  The flowers were cut from the oval Spellbinders die and shaped as with the previous post.  The stamp is The Greeting Farm "Dahlia".  I love these stamps and hope I can get better with my coloring techniques.  Border punch is EK, flourish Sizzix and label Spellbinders.

Fun with flowers and markers

The directions for making these flowers can be found at valitasfreshfolds.blogspot.com.  She is an asolute genius at making beautiful flowers from punches.  I didn't use punches, but my Spellbinder dies.  The large one was cut from the second smallest oval scalloped die, and the small flowers with the smallest die.  You cut each petal and glue them together.  I made several one day with different pattern papers.  What makes it so much fun is that you can re-purpose those old pattern papers that you don't use anymore.  At least, I don't use them so much since I started stamping.  When you cut down a pattern paper it totally changes the looks.  The one was actually a yellow/pink dahlia floral paper, but when it is cut down it looks like a nice pastel marble.  I inked each petal.  The centers are made with a small starburst punch that has been in my drawer for years.  I covered it with glitter, but don't think I will with the next ones.   

 This one is for "somebody" I know that likes orange.  It was meant to be a birthday card, but I didn't get it off in time.  I think she will like it anyway.  Colored with Copics.

Another Bird Cage

Used the same technique for the birdcage, but add a p iece of broken jewelry to the bottom.  Stamps are Inkadinkado and Fiskars, parts from  three different sets.   Flower is colored with copics.

Bird Cage

There are several techniques used in this baby!  To start with the birdcage is cut from grunge board.  I wanted to use the black distress poweders on it, but after two attempts, I didn't like the results.  I had a piece of grunge board that I tried to cut a leave out of, but it didn't cut all the way through, so I thought I'd just give that piece a try.  When I cut the birdcage it did show some imprints from the other die cut, so I decided to emboss it to cover up those lines.  I love the way it turned out.  It was a swirly leaf with litle flowers, but hardly distinquishable on the birdcage.  I then airbrushed it with C9, a dark grey, copic.  I like to use the dark grey rather than black.  Then I used a silver pigment ink pad and rubbed over the top of that.  It gave it a really cool metalic look, but not shiny.  There are Making Memories antique finish jump rings in the holes on the bottom of the cage.  The background is also a combination of techniques that I just kept trying untl it came out how I wanted it.  It is creme cardstock that was misted with Green Patina and Pewter perfect pearls.  Then I put Rusty Hinge distress ink on my glass mat and sprayed it again with the pewter perfect pearls and rubbed the paper onto it.  I repeated the process with Brushed Courdoroy Distress ink.  I dried it with a heat gun then embossed it with a Cuttlebug folder.  The flourishes are die cut from Tim Holtz Alterations.  The leaf is a Sizzix die.  Flowers are cut from the Sizzix hydrangea die using two large petals and one small.

Cute and Sweet

Same dies, Studio G stamp colored with copics, different DCWV glitter stack, and a little different placement of the elements. 

Tuesday Night Cards

These two cards were really fun to make.  I love this one but already thinking of ways to re-do it.  Guess that might be a project for tonight.  There are 5 different Sizzix dies, 1 Tim Holtz Alterations and 1 Spellbinders die used for this card.  The stamp is Studio G.  Paper is  DCWV Citrus Glitter Stack that I just picked up this week at 40% off.

I don't know why this picture appears upside down, as that is not the way it looks on the disc.  I mounted some of the die cuts with pop dots.

I love the color combo of CTMH Tulip and Juniper.  Stamp is Inkadinkado colored with copics, label is my new Spellbinders eyelet die.  The flowers are cut with the Sizzix big die Hydrangea with the DCWV pack above, but there is no glitter on this piece and they have little tiny polka dots.  I inked the edges with Tulip ink and I think it gives them a real soft look.  Each flower uses two large petals and one small.  The glitter brads are from a set that I bought a couple years ago on Christmas clearance.  I have used these on so many different pieces, they are very versatile and really add sparkle.  Background paper is embossed with large cuttlebug folder and sanded

New Stamp and Die Cut

It's been a while since I've done cards, but I got new inspiration from my Penny Black stamp and Spellbinders die cut.  Yesterday we went to Snohomish to see Skip and Alexis, and the Mewharters and meandered our way to Marysville and Craft Mart.  Foy keeps that store very well stocked with all the latest and greatest, even though the prices are a little steep.  I got this little Valentine girl on sale, so guess that makes up for some of it. 

The first card is done the traditional way, stamped on the die cut and colored with R27 and R37 for her dress, with G12 for her socks and sleeves.  I used #35, E31 and YR21 for the hair.  Hair should be done with YR20, but I don't have it yet, it's on order.  Blush is R02.  Base card is dry embossed, and the red hearts are from a 12x12 piece that I bought to do a wedding album with that I will be doing for a friend. 

I wanted to be able to use the stamp for more than just Valentines, so I stamped her and cut it out leaving the heart antenae off, and colored her in non-traditional colors, V14, V12 and V00 with the polka dots colored with Rose Star Jellyroll pen.  Hair is colored with E25, E33, and E31 for a slightly darker brunnette than the Valentine.  Skin colors are the same as the first.  Pattern Papers are DCWV glitter pack.

Creative day?

It's been kind of discouraging in a way.  I struggled with this first card forever.  I bought an anywhere square punch from Fiskars a long time ago with the idea of making window cards with it.  I tried 5 times to get the windows straight and it just wasn't going to happen.  I wanted this to be a scene looking out the window panes, but it's just one single window.  I airbrushed the background with Copics and used flower soft on the trees.

The background was another technique that I wanted to try.  It is done by by inking up the flatest side of an embossing envelope and embossing plain white paper.  The example I saw on Stampingmatilda's site was beautiful and the ink was very even.  She did it with distress inks, and I tried that and it came out very blotchy, kind of like putting ink on plastic, which is actually is.  The second attempt was with chalk ink.  It is a thicker ink and usually good on acrylics so I thought it would work well on the plastic embossing folder.  Wrong again.  Maybe if I had a full size ink pad it might have worked better, but I just have the little ones, and it got into the embossed parts which I didn't want.  This is my third attempt with CTMH Garnet dye ink.  It's still a little patchy, but not as bad as with the distress inks.  The leaves are a Martha Stewart stamp, cut out and colored with copics YG41 and YG67.  The bircage is a Studio G stamp, the base is ink distressed with Tea Dye ink.

I'm actually happy with this one.  It is another inspired by Stampingmatilda (Godlieve).  The label is ink distressed with Tea Dye ink with the die still sitting on it, so that it would look "framed" with white.  Image is stamped in same colored ink.  Border is cut with EK border punch.  Sentiment is CTMH.

The next two I did last night.  I made the base card some time ago, and it didn't go with the image I was using, so I set it aside for a while.  The stamped flower, I can't remember who made it, it was an inexpensive one.  I colored it with Copics RV32 and RV34, but it was not done on Neenah paper so it didn't go on real smooth.  Latic border is EK punch.

Slow Friday

It is very quiet in the office today, so I was able to put this card together.  I actually colored the stamp last night and was thinking about what to do with it.  I thought he kind of had a forlorn look on his face like he was missing somebody.  The stamp is an old Inkaddinkado Dawn McGlaughlin.

 Panda is feeling the still today too...haha.  This is how he likes to sleep, with all his toys, or as many as he can gather up together.  He has teddy under his chin, lambie behind, his cloth ribbon, one of his tennis balls and the remaining piece of a toilet paper roll.  We give him the empty rolls and he has a ball chasing it around until he decides to chew it up. 

Treasured Friends

Still digging through my old stash.  It really pays to hang on to stuff :)  The stamp is a 2001 Stampassions "Baire" by Laurie Campbell. 

Call Me

I actually had two little girls that I was working on, but this is the first to be completed.  They are Hero Arts stamps that I got this weekend at Ben Franklin's.  It took several tries, as I'm still working on my copic techniques. 

I've taken two copic classes.  The first one was a total bust, the second one was better, but she asked me if I actually learned anything because I was pretty up on the basics.  I have been watching lots of video's and mostly follow Suzanne Dean's style, but for the black hair I found another instructor and I like this technique better.  It is difficult to do black because it covers up all lines and bleeds very easily if it is worked too much.  When I was coloring her I was actually matching it to a different paper, and that is why she has green paper pieced pockets.  They are checked and I knew I couldn 't copy that.  There is lots of glitz on the papers so I gave her some too on her lace slip, at the neckline and on her shoes with a jellyroll sparkle pen.

Wednesday's creations

So, today I cleaned and organized my pattern paper rack.  It feels so good to get it done.  I find that I don't have as much pattern paper as I thought I had... which is a good thing.  I hardly ever use pre-printed patterns anymore because I stamp my own.  But I found a bunch of vintage looking papers that I forgot I had.  I guess it got me in the collage mood.  I picked up this Kraft cardstock the other day on sale at Joanne's and wanted to do some cards with it, and this is what I came up with.  The frame on this card was an old orange one that I never would have used as is, but I covered it with pattern paper and inked it.  The card base is dry embossed with an embossing folder.  Picture is cut from pattern paper and leaf is die cut sizzix die.

 Roses are cut from pattern paper.  The stamp is a dollar stamp from Michaels, and the black flower is fabric cut on Vagabond.  This frame is as is, as I liked the pattern on it, but it was from some old stash that I dug out.

Tuesday's Cards

I picked up some polka dot fabric at Walmart last week and wanted to try cutting some flowers on the Vagabond.  This is two of them.  The base is dry embossed with Cuttlebug folder on Vagabond.

 I got my March issue of Card Maker Magazine today and this looked fun to try.  I used the TH Caged Bird die for the bird, the leaf is cut from a Sizzix die I bought on sale yesterday.  The green paper on the bottom I used my Fiskars Wave roller that has been sitting in a drawer for a few years.

 This is the original version from the magazine.

Now it's time to clean up my room again, it's starting to get a little out of hand again.

Sunday Stampin'

After church, shopping and dog grooming I managed to get another card done.  I think I'm going to do one more of the birthday series and then be done with them for a awhile.

Totally Tim

Have I said that I love Tim Holtz products?  OMGosh, that man is so stinkin talented.  Everything on this card is from a Tim Product except the mat paper which is Basic Grey, the ribbon from Target and the two little brads.  The background was embossed with TH Texture Fade.  The flourish is from the Elegant Flourish Die, Bird Cage and bird are the TH Bird Cage Die.  Flowers are fabric cut from the Tattered Flower Die (TH).

The background was inked first with Stormy Sky and Scattered Straw Distress Ink. Then I used a spritz made with Sunflower Sparkle Perfect Pearls, which isn't actually Tim's but Ranger, the same company that he designs for.    The bird cage was embossed with TH Distress embossing powdered and inked with Stormy sky.  I actually did the background a couple weeks ago and it was waiting for the right artwork to put on it.  I really love the way this card came out.  Now, how else can I use this little bird cage and make it look different?

Happy Birthday

I am having so much fun with these Close to My Heart stamps and DCWV glitter stack.  The cake is colored in with Copics, highlighted with JellyRoll Glaze and glitter pens.

 I wanted a little accent in the black and grey, so colored in a few triangles with Copics as well.

Frazzled?

Hmm... maybe this reflects my inner feelings.  No, not really.  But I am loving working with the bright colors and glitz.

 The stamps are Unity, paper is DCWV Glitter Mat Stack.  Border cut with EK Punch.  Image colored with Copics.

Watermelon Girl

This is another one of the 8 year old stamps that I bought on eBay.  It took me three tries to get her colored right.  The first time the hair bled over the line, the second is was the foot.  This time it came out better.  I asked it and airbrushed the background.

I've also had these star paper clips forever and never used them.  The ribbons are from Target $1 spot.  For some reason, a little girl in coveralls just reminds me of something Americana.