Grateful - Cardabilities #124

Hello, again! I was feeling in the mood to make a layered, softly-colored, shabby-chic card, and when I ran across the current sketch at Cardabilities, I knew it was a perfect inspiration that would be so much fun to play with.

Here's the finished card...

(and here's the inspiration sketch...)

This time, for a floral cluster, I used a couple mini gardenias, next to a small lily, and just a couple mini roses, all sitting inside a twine wreath (inspired by all those threads inside the circle on the sketch)...

and atop a chipboard heart and heart circle frame that are inked and coated with clear German glass glitter for a slightly sparkly, sugared look...

The sentiment, perfect for either a thank you card or friendship card, (because I like to leave my options open when I'm not making a card for a specific use at the time) is a Tim Holtz "Big Chat" sticker backed with chipboard for stability...

Supplies:

Patterned papers:   My Minds Eye Lost & Found "Heirloom"

Chipboard heart and frame:   Maya Road            Dies:   Sizzix "Flowers Branches & Leaves"

Flowers:   Wild Orchid Crafts              Pearls:   Recollections              Sentiment:   Tim Holtz "Big Chat"

Lace and pearl stem:   local craft store

Miscellaneous:   clear medium German glass glitter,  twine,  Liquitex Ink! acrylic inks - Carbon Black & Titanium White

Thanks for visiting today!

          

Three of a Kind...

Happy Friday the 13th, everyone...I prefer to turn the tables on folklore and hope it's a lucky day for you all!

I pulled out a Penny Black floral stamp I've had for a while but haven't used on a card yet, and decided to mix up my traditional watercolors with watercolor pencils and play around. After stamping the image three times with various shades of black and grey ink, and watercoloring all three a bit differently, I couldn't decide which piece to make into a card, so I made up all three. :)

Once I had them colored in, I couldn't resist the urge to accent with a fun new set of circle stamps, a bit of ink splatter using both a brush and a splatter stamp, bows and lace, and some glittery accents to the butterfly on the stamp.

First, I colored the image in pink and green...I was in the mood for spring colors...

On all three cards, I colored the butterfly twice (using the same colors), then cut out the second butterfly and adhered over the first, accenting the top butterfly with Stickles and a white pearl pen, and bending the wings up for a little dimension...

Then I played with orange and yellow, and ended up with what I now call my "candy corn flowers." I had stamped this one using black ink, so the contrast with the bright colors really makes the details stand out. This card is on its way to a cousin across the country...

Forgot to mention that I added some gold microbeads to the centers of all the large flowers...the pic of the candy corn flowers shows them the best...

And after all the bright colors, I wanted to try something a little more subdued, and maybe a bit darker, so I turned to a fuchsia color flower and a darker background...and I liked that, too...

Supplies:

Stamps:   Penny Black "Botanical Notes";   Simon Says Stamp "Friendship Messages" (sentiments);   Indigo Blu "Limor Circles";   Winnie & Walter "Big Bang Confetti"

Color Mediums:   Windsor & Newton Cotman watercolors;   Caran d'Ache Supracolor watercolor pencils;   "Ice White" Viva Pearl Pen;   "Diamond" Stickles

Miscellaneous:   gold micro beads,  Uni Ball Signo white pen,   twine,  pearls,  lace strip, Archival Inks

Thanks for visiting today...have a wonderful weekend!

LLLC - Thanks for Being You...

It's La-La Land Crafts challenge day, and the Wednesday die-cut team has some fun creations to share with you! This week, our inspiration challenge is "Favorite LLLC Product."

Here's where the problem comes in for me...how do you choose your favorite LLLC product (in my case, dies) when you love every.single.one.of.them??? I tried - I really did - I put all my LLLC dies out in front of me, and picked one...then changed it for another...then another...you get the idea. This wasn't happening...there wasn't just one favorite. So I expanded the parameters....how about two faves? Well, that was better...but still not enough.

In the end, I decided on a design, with three of my favorite and most-used LLLC dies (with a little help from a couple more - LOL) ...

One thing I was sure of...I wanted a neutral background of grey and white. I found the perfect patterned paper, and added the white Lattice Doily Border Die pieces (as far as faves go, this die is "tied" with Lattice Border. But since I featured Lattice Border last week, this time it's Lattice Doily Border's turn). Then I decided to accent the edges a bit, so I pulled out a couple sparkly embossing powders, and gave the edges just a bit of shine with a slightly-colored sparkle. It's hard to see in the photo, so here's a closeup - it's a very subtle effect, but it's just enough...

Favorite dies #1 and #2?  Cherry Blossom Flowers and Berry Flourish...I use them A LOT!...

I embellished this pearl corsage pin with spacers and gems as a little extra touch to the Cherry Blossom cluster...

 

One little blossom fell down into the corner while I was gluing the others, and I decided I liked it there - happenstance is fun! :)  A label shape from the Stitched Elements set is the perfect fit for the small sentiment...I topped it with the small label frame from Book Tabs and Labels, and tied them both together to the front of the card...

Supplies:

LLLC Dies:   Cherry Blossom Flowers,   Berry Flourish,   Lattice Doily Border Die,   Book Tabs & Labels,   

Stitched Elements

Patterned paper:   Prima Almanac collection (6x6)

Sentiment stamp:   Inkadinkado          Lace:   TheFunkieJunkie.com          Pearls:   Recollections

Embossing powders:   Stampendous Winter Wonderland & Stardust         

Miscellaneous:   pearl stick pin,   white twine

I hope you'll stop by the La-La Land Crafts blog to admire the other projects my Wednesday Die Cut Team-mates have created to share with you!

Thanks so much for visiting today!

How Beautiful a Day Can Be...

A happy Monday to you!

I have a short and simple post for today's card, a CAS watercolor card that I added just a bit of mixed media touches to - and it's still "flat" compared to my usual "fully loaded" and floral style.  :)

To get the black and white stencil details along the sides and top, I mixed black craft paint with molding paste, and applied it "sloppily" through the stencil, allowing some of the mix to seep underneath. I wanted to get some free-style shading with the black, but still make a guideline for the white that was to come. Once that black layer was dried (with a little help from my heat gun), I went back over it using the same areas of the stencil, but this time using super heavy white gesso for slightly more detailed lines...

I used mini pearls to accent the center of the poppies, to give a little texture to the stamped design (and used mini black gems inside the small purple flowers in the design)...

So hard to photograph sparkly glitter - at least for me! But I tried anyway. :)  Black Diamond Stickles was applied heavily over the butterfly in the design, to add just a bit of sparkly, understated texture...

Supplies:

Image stamp:   Indigo Blu "Blazing Poppies"

Sentiment stamp:   Reverse Confetti "Paper Crane"

Stencil:   The Crafters Workshop Mini Chickenwire Reversed

Pearls:   Recollections          Black gems:   Kaisercraft            Watercolors:   Sakura Koi

Miscellaneous:   black hemp cording,  Golden molding paste,  Liquitex super heavy gesso,   Black Diamond Stickles

Thanks for popping in for a visit today...I hope your week is starting with a smile!

LLLC - Thank You...

Hello, all! It's Wednesday, and that means it's time for the Wednesday team for La-La Land Crafts to show you some more fun creations using their wonderful dies!

This week, our inspiration challenge is washi tape. I don't have a lot of rolls of washi tape in my stash, but I have a few that I really like, so this was a fun challenge to get me to actually USE these in a fun way...

I covered a piece of cardstock with the same washi tapes that I had adhered along the side of the front left of the card, and die cut that piece using the Honeycomb die. I chose a few of the interior pieces, and popped them up with foam tape inside a random few of the open honeycomb spots. (Before I adhered the honeycomb piece to the card front, I embossed the die into the white background. This makes the diecut lie flush with the front of the card when it's adhered, and allows the dimension of the "popped up" inside pieces to show.)

The die cut arrows and sentiment block were cut from the new Stitched Elements die set. I chose to use the arrows as pointers to add focus to the sentiment block below them, and "shabbied up" the arrows and sentiment block with ink and a white paint pen to accent the stitching holes...

Next to the floral cluster, and the sentiment block, are die cut leaves using the Open Leaf Flourish die, which was also shabbied up a bit with ink around the edges...

Supplies:

LLLC Dies:   Open Leaf Flourish,  Stitched Elements,  Honeycomb

Sentiment stamp:   Simon Says Stamp "Friendship Messages"

Flowers and stamens:  Wild Orchid Crafts

Pearls:   Recollections            Miscellaneous:  white hemp twine

You can see the rest of the team's wonderful creations over on the La-La Land Crafts blog, and on the LLLC Facebook page.

Thanks for visiting today!

The Twinery - You Are So Sweet...

Good Friday morning, everyone! I'm so pleased to announce that I was invited to be a Guest Designer over on The Twinery blog for August! When Julie first invited me, the ideas started flowing immediately. I've been playing with different styles lately - shabby chic, mixed media, watercolor - and I knew incorporating their wide selection of beautiful twines into these would be a fun experience!

So today, I'm starting off with a "fully loaded shabby chic mixed media" card, in some of my favorite colors...

The background starts off on a piece of 140# cold press watercolor paper. I floated bright shades of purple, pink, green, and aqua watercolors, and when they dried, added some pieces from an old dress pattern. Next, I used modeling paste with a chickenwire stencil to add just a hint of texture to the left side (it's barely visible in the photo, but it's there). Finally, I used gesso to adhere some twisted pieces of cheesecloth, and sprayed the cheesecloth with purple sprays, adding a final touch of Diamond Stickles to brighten it up a bit.

The chipboard dress form was painted white first (you can see that I left it white under the skirt). I "distressed" the base and top with black, cream, and bronze acrylic paints to give them an aged look. The bodice is a scrap of patterned paper. The skirt was the fun part...a layer of cheesecloth, then tulle accented with Diamond Stickles, and finally, pretty accents of Lilac Solid and Lilac Stripe twines...

The sentiment block is tucked into the florals with the use of a painted memo pin...

And finally, Gold Shimmer twine added just the right amount of sparkly accent to the lower corner of the card as big bows tucked under the florals...

Supplies:

Twines:   The Twinery - Gold Shimmer,  Lilac Solid,  Lilac Stripe

Dress form:   Maya Road            Lace:   TheFunkieJunkie.com

Stencil:   The Crafters Workshop/Mini Chickenwire            Flowers:   Wild Orchid Crafts

Die:   Sizzix Flowers Branches & Leaves          Pearls:   Recollections            Tim Holtz Memo Pin

Sentiments:   Winnie & Walter/The Big, The Bold, and You;   Simon Says Stamps Handwritten Greetings

Mixed media supplies:   Sakura Koi watercolors,  sewing pattern pieces,  modelling paste,  Distress Inks,

cheesecloth,  Diamond Stickles

Thanks so much for visiting today...have a wonderful weekend!

Cardabilities Sketch #104 - Thanks For All You Do...

TGIF! This week I had one of those "it's late at night, but the idea is hot and I'm going for it!" nights. While cruising some of the blogs in my feed yesterday afternoon, I came across the new Cardabilities sketch challenge, and I had a few ideas I jotted down. Last night, I changed my mind on a couple of those ideas, and decided to get to work on them before I lost momentum. Needless to say, it was late when I finished (drying time accounted for much of the time spent into the wee hours...that's my story and I'm sticking to it! heehee). Here's the finished card....

Here's the new sketch challenge that the design is based on...

For the background, I started with a piece of solid colored paper, and used matte medium to paste it to a base of 140 lb. watercolor paper. I knew I'd be using wet mediums on top of the paper, and wanted it to have a heavy base that could absorb the wet mediums without buckling. Then I gesso'd on several pieces of cheesecloth as the start of the textured base. 

Once the gesso was dry, I used a combination of sprays and Distress Inks applied with foam applicators to add spots of color over some of the gesso'd areas, leaving the rest of the gesso spots white. The final step was to fingerpaint (yep...I fingerpainted it on...it was fun! LOL)  Distress Stickles in Spun Sugar, Broken China, and Frayed Burlap over the front, to add more spots of color and texture, and just a subtle hint of sparkle.

Here's a closeup of a piece of the front that shows all the ingredients in one place...

There's a diecut doily under the sentiment block, and a twine wreath in addition that sits on top of the horizontal sentiment block. Each on their own didn't look substantial enough, but together, they counter the weight of the heavily textured background and the wider sentiment block...

The sentiment itself is stamped onto a piece of a diecut tattered banner...

Supplies:

Patterned papers:   Maja Designs Vintage Summer Basics

Dies:   Spellbinders Scalloped Borders One;   Sizzix Flowers Branches & Leaves;   Lifestyle Crafts Antique Doily;

Tim Holtz Tattered Banners

Lace:   TheFunkieJunkie.com          Punch:   EK Success Round Binding Edge

Flowers:   Wild Orchid Crafts          Sentiment stamp:   Simon Says Stamp/Friendship Messages

Pearls:   Recollections          Miscellaneous:   cheesecloth, gesso, Distress Inks, Distress Stickles

Thanks for stopping by for a visit today...have a wonderful weekend!

Thanks a Bunch...

As I mentioned Monday, today I'm switching gears and going from shabby mixed media to a clean-and-simple watercolor card.

So without a lot of chatter, here it is:

The sentiment is stamped onto a piece of chipboard that's been distressed with gesso, paints, crackle medium and scraping the edge of the scissors blade along the edges of the strip...

A closeup of the watercolored tulip stamp...

The twines are small pieces that I received in online orders, holding little tissue wrapped packs closed (do you save all those little packing supplies like I do? LOL)...

Supplies:

Stamps-image and sentiment:   Penny Black "a bunch"

Embossing folder:   Cuttlebug Honey Comb edge embossing folder

Silver pearls:   Queen & Co.           Watercolors:    Sakura Koi

Miscellaneous:   twines, washi tapes

Thanks for stopping in for a visit today...I hope your week is going well!

One Technique...Three Looks...

Happy "Hump Day!" Today I have three cards to share that all are made using the same technique...another one I learned during the Watercolor for Cardmakers online class.  It's a pretty simple technique using stencils in a different way, and definitely one that's fun to experiment with!

They're all Clean and Simple, and two have a bit of Shabby Chic added to the mix. With this first one, I was inspired by a beautiful photo I saw of a morning sunrise, and that gave me the idea to use the particular stencil I used. So I loaded watercolors in a couple different purples, a bright golden orange, and a deep orange, and here's what I got...

I added a small heart, machine "stitched" it without thread around the edges, and used a combo of stamping and a die cut for the sentiment. Here are some close-ups...

I was happy to see the way the watercolors blended as they dried, and the design of the stencil was perfect for the "sun rays" I was hoping to get. I followed the placement of some of the lines caused by the stencil to machine-stitch some lines to the bottom of the card front...

Supplies:

Sentiment stamp:   Winnie & Walter "The Big, The Bold, And You"

Dies:   Technique Tuesday "Say It-Fabulous";   Papertrey Ink "Limitless Layers-Heart Stitches"

Stencil:   Memory Box "Texture Brilliant"

Orange gemstone:   EK Success            Watercolors:  Sakura Koi

This next card uses a chevron stencil, turned on its side, and very *bright* watercolors. :)  I highlighted the straight lines of the chevron edges and center with machine stitching. The splatters are actually stamped...I didn't trust my splattering technique that day, and realized that I had an ink that matched the bright pink watercolor, so that's what I went with!

A couple close-ups...

Supplies:

Stamps:   Winnie & Walter "The Big, The Bold, and The Happy";   Stampin'Up! Gorgeous Grunge

Stencil:   Tim Holtz Chevron            Gems:   Kaisercraft

Watercolors:  Sakura Koi

The last card for today is actually the first one I made. It's very close to the card that was taught in the online class, and actually allowed me, for the first time, to see the difference in the different brands of watercolors. The watercolors I used for this card are a bit paler, softer, and leave a more "chalky" finished look than the other two cards...still pretty, but a different look that you may not be able to actually see in the photos...

Supplies:

Sentiment stamp:   Winnie & Walter "The Big, The Bold, and You"

Stencil:   Tim Holtz Chevron            Watercolors:  Loew Cornell

Miscellaneous:   silver sequins, white twine

Thanks for stopping by today. Tomorrow I'll be sharing a "fully loaded" mixed media and watercolor card. Until then, have a great day!