Thinking Inking

A Pure Heart

I've told you before how much I love Julee Tilman's Verve Visual Plain Jane stamps, right?  They are the handiest little stamps, invariably saying something that I could really use. Right after I got back from South Carolina, I received an envelope of Verve-a-liciousness--what a sweet surprise! So tonight I wanted to use one of the new Plain Janes, Psalm 51:10. I think that this card might just have to sit out on my desk as a good reminder.

I also wanted to show you some pretty new papers that I ran across at last CHA and loved, Graphic45. The ones that I've used here are from the Playtimes Past Collection, and they have a whimsical antique look that reminds me of my very first hardback Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes book--perhaps some of you may have had the same one, the one with the black and white checkerboard cover. I had used this paper line today for the first time when I was working on a card for Ellen's newsletter, and I loved how that card came out. Since it won't be posted on my blog, I thought I'd better use some of my scraps and make something that I could share here!

I used an SU die to cut the long bracket and chipboard base for it, and a Coluzzle circle template to get a large circle to fit in on corner. I cut it with the same die, trimming along those little perforated edges and stitching it down to the ivory/paisley layer. Ribbon is the 1" wide silk from StarLitStudio, and buttons are from my stash (red ones) and PTI (black ones).  I stamped the sentiment in SU's Brilliant Blue ink and die cut it with  Spellbinders Label die.

If you get a chance, check Nichole's, Becky's, Lauren's, Lisa's, and Maggie's PaperTrey Ink Sneak Peeks--there's some amazing work waiting for you.

Thank you for visiting, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Celebrating Mothers

 

Tonight I'm excited to be able to share a Mother's Day gift and card ensemble, PaperTrey Ink style.  I found two of these frames on a clearance table outside a card store a couple of years back and added them to the stash, knowing that they would eventually come in handy. Having gotten this sweet picture of my mom and my little niece, and having a new PaperTrey Ink "Mother" set to use with it, it was finally time to let go of my last frame. . . Why?

My mom deserves it! She's a gentle soul, and I could almost feel her comforting my niece in this picture.  She's talented, generous, gracious, diligent, kind, and altogether lovely. I am truly thankful for her and blessed by her. When I saw the sentiment about being comforted by her presence, my mind turned first to "comforter" and next to "quilt." Ah Ha--I have a quilt set or two!

For the paper-pieced quilt, I took one of Nichole's quilt squares from Quilter's Sampler, and made a larger version that would fill almost the width of my 4" x 6" opening.  I saved it as a .jpg template and printed it on three different colors of 2008 Bitty Dot Basics paper, then cut, pieced, and stitched it all together. (Nichole is making a printable .pdf copy of directions for all of our projects available here on her blog.)

The sentiment over the quilt is from the new Mother set, stamped in Berry Sorbet and die-cut with a Spellbinders Ribbon Tags Trio die.The button is a PaperTrey Vintage button, and ribbon is Berry Sorbet Satin.

For the card, I used squares from  Quilter's Sampler, again stamped on the 2008 Bitty Dot Basics paper and sewn together. If I were doing it again, I might try embossing them in detail white embossing powder rather than stamping them in black ink, because I think they would go better with the framed quilt that way. As long as I spent sewing those together though, I wasn't inclined to redo it--not just yet anyway!

I'm looking forward to seeing what the other girls came up with: Niki Estes, Nichole, Mish Wooderson, Melissa Phillips, Lisa Johnson, Lauren Meader, Heather Nichols, Geny Cassady,  Dawn McVey, Betsy Veldman, and Becky Oehlers

I hope you get a chance to visit these blogs--I'm guessing that you'll come away with some great ideas. Thank you for visiting!

Spring Cuppie

Woohoo! I finished an assignment this afternoon, and before diving into a new one tomorrow, I thought I'd make a just-for-fun card. In January I received my sweet friend Taylor's (Taylored Expressions) A Year of Sweets 1 set, but I was in the middle of getting ready for CHA. One thing followed another, yadda, yadda, and tonight I finally had a chance to play with it.  What a fun set!

I colored the image with the Copic Markers pictured above. Paper is some Scenic Route Loveland that has been languishing on my shelves for too long.  (Use that stash, people!  It will just go out of style if you keep hoarding it!) For tools, I used a Stampin' Up notebook edge punch, as well as a Spellbinders Fancy Scalloped Border Pierceability (even without piercing or embossing, you can get a great scallop).  Ribbon is from PaperTrey Ink. . . and the button just might be too. . . ;-D

Don't forget that Saturday night/Sunday morning at midnight, EST, is the new PaperTrey release. I especially enjoyed this month's sets and think that you'll like them too.  Check out Nichole's blog for some gorgeous ideas and links to sneak peeks.

Thank you for visiting, and have a lovely day!

Girl Friday Floral Thanks: CPS 106

When I saw this week's CPS 106 sketch, I pulled out my Cosmo Cricket Girl Friday papers; I knew that the cool curve on Tami's sketch would be perfect with these papers!

This is a fun sketch, and I hope you get a chance to play along with us. Details are listed below. Thanks for visiting!

The Details:
Stamps: Everyday Classics (PaperTrey Ink--anniversary set unavailable for purchase)
Paper: Girl Friday (Cosmo Cricket)
Ink: Raspberry Fizz (PaperTrey Ink), Antique Linen Distress Ink
Cardstock: Vintage Ivory (PaperTrey Ink)
Accessories: brads (Stampin' Up), button (PaperTrey Ink), foam tape (3M)
Tools: Blossom, Double Ended Tags, and Flourish Accents Die Templates (Spellbinders), sanding block, sewing machine

Lilacs in a Pitcher

I mentioned that my little violet card from Saturday had a sister card; this is the sister. If you would like to watch me color the image with Copic markers, I have a two-part video posted on the CLASSroom today. (I'm still really struggling with my camera settings--perhaps it's time for a regular camcorder instead of my FLIP, which I can't get focused well on a close-up image.)

Have a lovely day!

_____________
Product Credits

Stamps: Lilacs in a Pitcher by Karen Lockhart
Paper: Basic Gray Euphoria pad
Coloring Medium: Copic Markers in V01, V15, V17, G21, G85, C1, C3, W1, B21, B23
Tools: Copic Airbrush System, Spellbinders Circle Nestability, Martha Stewart Lattice Punch

Violets Meet Euphoria

Tonight I took a little break from some assignments and stamped something that I could color.  I chose a Lockhart Violet Cupcake image and colored it with the Copic markers pictured below.

 

The B23 marker on the end was the one that I used to airbrush a pale blue background into the top of the circle, using my Spellbinders Circle Nestability die as a mask. I also used a Spellbinders Fancy Scalloped Border Pierceability for the right edge of the card. (I skipped the embossing and piercing, opting for a simple large scallop this time.)

See the flower centers?  That's a new toy product that I played with today--Flower Soft. I didn't use the little wires, though I loved it when I saw it done at CHA. I simple dotted a bit of the Flower Soft glue over my yellow flower centers and added the Lemon Flower Soft material. The texture is actually quite different from flocking, more realistic for nature.

Patterned paper is Basic Grey's Euphoria 6" x 6" pad, and Dew Drops are Champagne pearl. Ribbon is 1" Arctic White silk. This card has a sister using the Lilac Jar image, but I'm trying to get a little coloring video made to go with it. Wish me luck--my desktop system on which I edit on is not a happy camper these days!

Thank you for visiting.

Thanks So Much: CPS 105

 

This week's CPS 105 sponsor was new to me; Kelly at Keep In Touch Card Shop loaded us up with goodies, custom packed for each of us.  See all of the pieces in that picture?  That was what I had left after I'd made my card! (Don't worry--I'm not letting them go to waste. That flocked damask is gorgeous!)

Everything on the card was in the kit. The only thing that I added was adhesive, as well as using my Spellbinders Curved Rectangles and Square Nestability dies. I hope you get a chance to browse Kelly's Keep In Touch Card Shop--she has some real treasures there! Also, be sure to check out her Buttons and Milkcaps giveaway that you can win by posting a sketch and linking on the CPS blog, more details here.

Thank you for stopping by.

Embossed Polished Stone on the CLASSroom

Today I have a card posted on the CLASSroom blog; I had been playing with my Copic Ink Refills and polished stone again, and added a little twist with heat embossing. After I figured out what not to do, it was a fun little  experiment.

Have a lovely day!

Belated Beaver Birthday

Edited to add: I left this on autopost last night, and somehow the words and pictures reformatted when it posted. Sorry for the confusion; it should look right to everyone now. Thanks!

How about a beaver card tonight?  I chose one of the Our Craft Lounge Bubs the Beaver images and paired him with my Copic markers and Cosmo Cricket Mr. Campy papers and printed twill. I used a Stampin' Up notebook edge punch and Carl and Marvy corner rounders.

The Copic markers that I chose are all pictured below in the step-by-step pictures, just in case any of you would find the coloring helpful.  Click on the pictures to enlarge and read the marker labels.

Have a wonderful day!

 

In this step I colored the wood pile; I missed a branch, but I colored it later.

In this step I put my basic beaver colors on, but you will see that I blended them a bit by the next step. Also, I chose reddish-browns for the beaver as opposed to the more neutral browns for the wood pile, just to distinguish them visually.

 

Shadows establish a base for the beaver and wood so that they appear to be sitting on solid ground rather than levitating.

The unlabeled center marker is an empty marker case filled with half blender fluid and half YR31 ink for a simple way to blend the pale yellow into the white of the cardstock.

Card detail: the inside has a belated birthday sentiment. Button is a PaperTrey Ink item (out of stock at the moment), and twill is Mr. Campy. I softened the yellow a bit more after the last step-by-step photo.

Use-It-Up Notecards

 

Did you see the snow down South?  I think I left it there when we packed to come home! I hope that all of you who aren't accustomed to dealing with snow stay warm and safe.

I needed a set of monogrammed note cards for an aunt and decided to use more of my hoarded paper stash, this time from a K&Company Hannah Scrap Pad to Go--one of those "I need to use this 40% 0ff coupon on something" purchases. (You've never done that, right?)  The papers are beautiful, and there were several pages of little journaling block die-cuts which I also incorporated into my set. Additionally I used some Spellbinders dies, a Classic Circle Nestability and a Labels 1 die.

Stamps are from the Just Rite Stampers Special Occasions Deluxe Kit, stamped in Red Brick Versamagic ink (Tsukineko). I sewed several of the layers down and added a few brads,  buttons, rhinestones, and ribbons. Additionally I used a Doily Lace punch on a couple of the card fronts. Some sandpaper and some Antique Linen Distress ink finished the cards off. I think my aunt will be pleased, and I know that I am pleased to have used supplies from the stash.

Thank you for visiting, and have a lovely day!

Edited to Add: Someone had asked for help in conditioning Just Rite stamps. Sharon Johnson has written an excellent tutorial on this for Splitcoaststampers. Hope this helps!