New Life

Meet today's card.

I really don't like to throw away mistakes, so I tuck them away and come back and look at them with fresh eyes.  That is what today's card is about.  

I had inked up a card front with Bisters paint again but it didn't work for a card.  Looked muddy and not very inviting.  So, I tucked it away.  Today, I got it out and started cutting it up until I had this lovely little piece left.  I stamped the butterfly from Penny Black onto the piece and liked it.

I then coloured the wings using Copic markers and a Signo White gel pen.  Ok, not bad.

I wanted the card to be clean so added scoring to the card front and popped the butterfly on top of that.

The great sentiment from Daisy Bucket was stamped last.
 Glad I saved that scrap.

Adding my card to these challenges:

Simon Says- ANYTHING GOES

Seize the Birthday- ANYTHING GOES

Fairytale Stampers- THINGS WITH WINGS

Crazy 4 Challenges- THINK SPRING

Thanks so much for coming by and taking a look.

Supplies:  stamps- Penny Black, Daisy Bucket/ Signo wh pen/ Copic markers/ Stazon bl ink/ scoring tool- Scorbug/ pop dots

Rainy Day

Happy Saturday.  

Rainy days....some people like them, some people don't.  I think of rainy days as being a big part of Spring and I want Spring to come and stay.  

Today, I am being inspired by the umbrella challenge at Splitcoast from a Pinterest board and this photo:

My card was pretty simple to do.  I sprinkled some Bister paint onto my card front then sprayed with water.  Many people have asked what Bister is so here is a link where I bought mine and also a video that will help you understand what they are all about:  http://ibrakeforstamps.com/bister.aspx

When that was all dry, I inked the new poppies and sentiment from the Pretty Petals set by Penny Black with Stazon ink...great set!  

HINT:  I used to hate using Stazon because of the clean-up.  I found if you ink your stamp with Versamark first the Stazon will clean off much easier.

I coloured the flowers using Copic markers in blue of course.  I used a Signo white gel pen to highlight the centers of the flowers and done.

 Adding my card to these challenges:

Simon Says- ANYTHING GOES

Addicted to Stamps- MAKE YOUR MARK

(Bisters)

Crazy 4 Challenges- THINK SPRING

Creative Corner- SPRING HAS SPRUNG

Simply Papercraft- Anything Goes

Enjoy your weekend.  I really appreciate that you took the time to come and take a peek.

Supplies:  stamps- Penny Black/ Stazon bl ink/ Copic markers/ Signo wh pen/ Bister/ Mini mister

Wash of Colour

Morning.

If any of you have seen the last card I posted, then you know that I have just recently started playing with Bister which is a crystal pigment paint.  They come in little pots and are concentrated colour that give the most amazing results when water is added.

I began by cutting a piece of 100 lb. watercolour paper.  There are different ways to apply the Bister to your paper.  They look like coffee grounds and you need very little to achieve a burst of colours.  I dip a dry paint brush into the pot and tap the paint over my paper.  (Some videos show the others piercing a hole in the top of the small pots so they can sprinkle the paint on the paper.)

When I had enough paint on the paper, I sprayed with water and watched the colours emerge.  I dried my paper using a heat gun to speed up the process but you can also let it air dry.

I stamped a script from Penny Black along the side for interest then the flowers with black Stazon ink.  I highlighted the images by using a white Signo gel pen.

Lastly, I stamped the lovely sentiment to complete my card.

Adding my card to these challenges:

Seize the Birthday- ANYTHING GOES

Simon Says- ANYTHING GOES

Addicted to Stamps and More- MAKE YOUR MARK
 (I used the Bisters)

Everybody Art- TURQUOISE and BROWN

Thanks so much for coming by and taking a look.

 Supplies:  stamps- Stampers Anonymous, Denami Design, Penny Black/ Stazon bl ink/ Bister/ Signo pen/ Mini Mister

Abstract

Morning.  

I love trying out new things.  Meet today's card using a new product called Bisters.  Bisters are crystal pigments of ink like Brushos for those of you that are familiar with those.  They are so easy and so FUN to play with and you know how much I love to play.

I began creating my card front by dabbing some Goosebumps onto my watercolour paper.  Goosebumps is like a gel medium that resists the ink and adds texture to the piece.

Next, I sprinkled some Bisters onto my paper and sprayed with water to reveal an explosion of colours.  You need so little to create such beautiful results.

When all was dry, I stamped the flowers and the sentiment using black Stazon ink.

The flowers looked a bit lost on the brilliant background, so I highlighted them using grey Memento ink and a white Signo gel pen.

Adding my card to these challenges:

CASology- BLOSSOM

Simon Says- PINTEREST SPRING

Shopping Our Stash- I MADE THIS

Cards for Guyz- CAS

My Time to Craft- SILOUETTE

Thanks so much for coming by and taking a look.

Supplies:  stamps- Unity, Serendipity/ Bisters/ Memento ink/ Stazon ink/ Signo white pen/ Mini Mister/ Goosebumps

Blue Skies Ahead

Happy Saturday.  

Guess what?  A blue card!!  I guess that's no big surprise seeing I love playing with my blue Distress inks.  The first full day of Spring has me thinking of blue skies and warmer temps.

I am playing with some new products from Penny Black.  

I began created my flower panel by colouring the Gentle Whisper stamp with my Memento markers, spraying with water and stamping.  This stamp is just perfect for using that technique of colouring directly onto the stamp.  I also picked up some Distress ink with a paint brush and added some watercolouring to the flowers and splattered the background.

The main panel of the card front was created by pressing Salty Ocean and Peacock Feathers Distress inks onto my acrylic block, sprayed with water and pressed onto my paper.  

When that was dry, I stamped the sentiment from the Sprinkles and Smiles stamp set.  I added a few black pearls to the center of my card to tie in with the sentiment stamped in black.

Adding my card to these challenges:

CASology- BLOSSOM

C.R.A.F.T.- FEMALE

Time Out- CLEAN and SIMPLE

Sister Act- ANYTHING GOES

Have a great weekend and thanks so much for the visit.

Supplies:  stamps- Penny Black/ Distress ink/ paint brush/ acrylic block/ Mini Mister/ Memento markers/ Memento ink

Triple Play

Morning.  Today, I am being inspired by the challenge at Splitcoast called Triple Play.  

The challenge we were given was to try and include combinations of 3's.

My triple play is 3 techniques, 3 layers and stamped the flowers 3 times.  

My background was created in three steps.  First, I inked up my acrylic block with Distress ink (Mustard Seed, Ripe Persimmon and Spiced Marmalade), sprayed with water and pressed it onto my paper.  I then went back in with more of the same Distress inks and added some watercolouring to fill in the empty areas.  Then when that was all dry, I stencilled over a piece of drywall tape using white Colorbox pigment ink.

I inked my flowers with Stazon black ink which I find is the best kind of ink to use when stamping over a painted surface.  I inked the sentiment from Rubbernecker with the same ink and stamped it in the corner.

I mounted the piece on black cardstock for the border then tried it on a white card front but it didn't look right.  So, I took more of the orange and yellow Distress inks mentioned above and rubbed the edges of my white card front so it would blend in with the colour on the main panel.

I am adding my card to these challenges:

Shopping Our Stash- I MADE THIS

Addicted to Stamps- ANYTHING GOES

Use Your Stuff- CREATE YOUR OWN BKG

Mixed Media- HINTS OF SPRING

 Thanks so very much for coming by and taking a look.

Supplies:  stamps- Rubbernecker, Unity/ Distress ink/ acrylic block/ Stazon ink/ drywall tape/ Colorbox ink

Spring Beauties

Good Morning.

This month I have the pleasure and honor of being the Guest Designer at the Serendipity Stamps where the theme is Spring Fever.  They have so many wonderful stamps for Spring and this one called 

Large Violets spoke to me. 

I began my card by masking the oval.  I inked the violet stamp with Memento Grey ink and stamped over the mask.  I used the grey so I would be able to watercolour over the image and the lines would not show.  Then using a light pencil line, I traced along the inside of the oval and removed the mask.
 I watercoloured the flowers by pressing my Distress ink pads onto my non-stick craft sheet and blending with water.  It is such an easy technique to use.  I painted onto my 90 lb. watercolour paper using a fine line brush. 
 When my flowers were dry, I went back in and carefully painted the oval.
Finally, stamped this great sentiment called Live Each Season and mounted all onto my card front.

I hope that you may have a chance to play along with us this month.

Please check out what the rest of the Design Team has created:

Marybeth Lopez

Miriam Napier

Vickie Zimmer

Jeanne Jachna

Jenny Gropp

Julie Warner

Karen Amidon

Thanks so much for coming by and taking a look.  Just a few more days and I will be able to wish you a Happy Spring!

Supplies:  stamps- Serendipity Stamps/ Distress inks/ paint brush/ non-stick craft sheet/ Spellbinders die to cut the oval/ Memento Grey and Bl ink

Mask, Sponge and Stamp

Morning.  Looking for a fun challenge that will have you scratching your head?  Well I've got a good one for you.  

Here is the card I made for the One-Layer Simplicity Challenge this month where the challenge Susan gave us is to create a one-layer card using only sentiment stamps called Word, Words, Words.  Well, I did have to scratch my head and think about this one.  I wanted to add interest in some way yet keeping true to the clean and simple look of a OLC card.  Here is what I came up with.

I began by masking my card front and started rubbing on Distress inks in these colours:  Salty Ocean, Peacock Feathers, Shaded Lilac and Seedless Preserves.  I splattered the panels with water to add some depth and interest.  When that was dry, I grabbed some birthday sentiment stamps and started stamping away.  I found my Stamp-a-ma-Jig helped me with positioning the stamps into the panels.

That's it....done. 

Adding my card to these challenges too:

Seize the Birthday- FOCUS ON THE SENTIMENT

Shopping Our Stash- I MADE THIS

Use Your Stuff- CREATE YOUR OWN BACKGROUND

Thanks so much for coming by and taking a look.

Supplies:  stamps- The Old Island Stamp Comp., Studio G/ Distress ink/ Mini Mister/ Memento ink

Just for You

Morning.  Hope you had a relaxing weekend.

Meet today's card.  I wanted it to be fun and uplifting and that was easy to do with this cute new image from the Furry Affection set by Penny Black

I began by stamping the cat onto my white cardstock using black Memento ink.  I then coloured him with Copics and used a Spellbinders die to cut it out.  Before removing the piece from the die, I took some Peacock Feathers Distress ink and sponged around the edges.  I love the look of the border you get by leaving the piece in the die and adding ink.

For the white card front I stamped the sentiment then did some random embossing.  I did that by placing my paper into an embossing folder and hitting it with a rubber mallet.

I didn't have any  blue cardstock to match the die-cut piece so I rubbed more Peacock Distress ink onto my white card so you would see a blue border all the way around.  The finishing touch was some sparkle on the hearts using a Stella Wink pen.

I am adding my card to these challenges:

Little Red Wagon- CUTE, CUTE, CUTE

AAA Cards Game- CAS BARE NAKED

Sister Act- ANYTHING GOES

Virginia's View- EMBOSSING
(I like to do random embossing using my EB folder
and a rubber mallet)


Thanks for coming by and have a great week.

Supplies:  stamps- Penny Black/ Memento ink/ Copic markers/ Spellbinders die/ eb folder/ rubber mallet/ Stella Wink pen

Round We Go

Happy Saturday.  

Do you ever feel like you have lost time somewhere??  Phew...that's what I feel like after this busy week with no time and no mojo.  Is it the lack of sunshine or what!!

WELL, this am I was inspired by the challenge at Splitcoast from a Pinterest board called Beautiful Cookies.  I am not a big cookie eater but loved all the inspiring designs and colours I saw.  I found this unusual cookie that doesn't look very appetizing but had interesting designs on it:

 

 So, I began by stamping my Zentangles stamp from Serendipity Stamp in black onto my white cardstock.  I then cut squares that were one and a half inch in size.  I coloured the squares with Copic markers; should have used some purple but I liked the blue better with the colours I used and of course, what is a card without blue.  I then cut the squares in half diagonally and rounded the corners using my Corner Chomper.  I mounted the triangles using pop dots to created the pinwheel shape. 

The sentiment from Mama Elephant was stamped under that and the finishing touch was the button with the twine.

Adding my card to these challenges:

Simon Says- THINGS THAT FLY

Challenge Up Your Life- MASCULINE

Chocolate, Coffee and Cards- FOR A CHILD

Sister Act Card- ANYTHING GOES

Southern Girls- BOYS

Thanks so much for taking time out to come by for a visit.  

Supplies:  stamps- Serendipity, Mama Elephant/ Copic markers/ pop dots/ Corner Chomper/ Memento bl ink

Bloom

Good Morning.  Hope this weekend is finding you relaxed and happy.  I am just glad to have some warmer temperatures and to see the sun is shining.  

Here is the card of the day.  Still playing around with the Zentangle stamp from Serendipity.  This time I used it as a faint background behind my flowers.  I really like the interest and backdrop it created.  I masked the outside of my card then inked it up with a more pale colour by using Antique Linen Distress ink so the florals would become the focal point. 

 Next, I coloured the Delicate Florals from Penny Black using my Memento markers, sprayed with water to blend and then stamped.  I went back in and added some watercolouring using my Distress inks to the flowers as well.  I removed the mask and then stamped the sentiment from Mama Elephant.

I am adding my card to these challenges:

Simon Says- SPECIAL LADY

Addicted to CAS- DISTRESS

(Distress inks)

CAS on Sunday- GIRL POWER

Quirky Crafts- PRETTY IN PINK

A Gem of a Challenge- CLEAN AND SIMPLE

Your visit here is always most appreciated!

Have a great week.

Supplies:  stamps- Penny Black, Mama Elephant, Serendipity/ Memento markers/ paint brush/ Distress ink/ black Memento ink

Floral Inspirations

Welcome to the weekend and meet today's card.

I am having fun playing along with the Inspiration Challenge at Splitcoast this am.  Today, we are being inspired by the Great Big Canvas site.  Here is the canvas that inspired my card:

My card was made using some wonderful new products from Penny Black.  I inked up the 

Gentle Whisper stamp by colouring it with Memento markers.  I coloured directly onto the stamp adding different shades of orange and reds; so easy to do.  I sprayed with water to help the colours blend, then stamped onto a piece of watercolour paper.  I repeated that process several times and then when dry, I went back in with a paint brush and some water and filled in a bit then splattered some of the colour on the background.  

After the piece was totally dry, I used the new die called Stitched Edges to cut the curve with my Cuttlebug and added the red piece of card stock behind that for interest.  Lastly, I stamped the sentiment from the
Sprinkles and Smiles set.

I am adding my card to these challenges:

Simon Says- SPECIAL LADY

CAS on Sunday- GIRL POWER

Addicted to Stamps- CLEAN and SIMPLE

Craft Stamper- ANYTHING GOES

The Mixed Media Cards- HINTS OF SPRING

 

Thanks so much for coming by.  Hope you have a great weekend.

Supplies:  stamps- Penny Black/ Memento markers/ Cuttlebug/ paint brush/ Mini mister/ Memento bl ink/ pearls

Spring Fever

Do you have Spring Fever yet?  I sure do and I am anxiously awaiting for the snow to be gone and the temperatures to warm up.

This month, I am so happy to be the Guest Designer at Serendipity Stamps.  Aren't these stamps just the most gorgeous!  Our theme this month is Spring Fever.

I began my card by stamping this happy sentiment called And I Say to Myself in the bottom right hand corner.  I did the sentiment first so I could have a better idea how to stamp the flowers around that and have them in the right areas so the card would look balanced.  

Next, I used the Tulip Vase and stamped the tulips around the edges using black Memento ink.  I did that by first stamping the image onto my acetate sheet with my Stamp-a-ma-Jig which helped me know where to position the flowers without the vase.  I also wanted to show another way to use that stamp if you only wanted the flowers and not the vase.

To colour the flowers, I rubbed my Distress ink pads onto an acrylic block and using water and a paint brush, watercoloured my flowers.

When all was dry, I drew in a black line border to pull it all together.

I hope it gives you a bit of a Spring-time feeling.  I hope that you get a chance to play along with us in the challenge this month.

If you would like to see what the rest of the Design Team has created you can find them all here:

Marybeth Lopez

Miriam Napier

Vickie Zimmer

Jeanne Jachna

Jenny Gropp

Julie Warner

Karen Amidon

I am adding my card to these challenges:

CAS-ual Fridays- SPRINGTIME MELODIES

Less is More- THIS MAKES ME HAPPY
(seeing Spring's arrival)

Simon Says- ANYTHING GOES

CAS on Sunday- GIRL POWER

Addicted to Stamps- CLEAN and SIMPLE

Thanks so much for coming by and taking a look.

Supplies:  stamps- Serendipity/ Distress ink/ Memento bl ink/ Blackline pen/ paint brush/ acrylic block/ Stamp-a-ma-jig

Keeping Warm

Keeping warm...that's what the winter has been in my part of the world.  Can you relate to this scene?

Well, here is a simple card made using a great winter farm scene from Serendipity Stamps.

I stamped the scene on my main panel then cut it out and coloured it with Copic markers.  I mounted that onto a piece of red cardstock.  I then stamped the scene onto my card front but left it in the black and white then mounted the main panel over that matching up the scene with pop-dots. 

I added the sentiment from Hero Arts and the twine at the top to finish it off.

Adding my card to these challenges:

Seize the Birthday- MASCULINE

Simon Says- ANYTHING GOES

Use Your Stuff- TWINE

Sentimental Sundays- ANYTHING GOES

Stamping Sensations- ONE FOR GUYS


Hope you are keeping cozy and warm.  Thanks for the visit.

Supplies:  stamps- Serendipity, Hero Art/ Copic markers/ Memento bl ink/ twine