Thinking Inking

Sending Birthday Wishes

Hello. Remember me? Yes, I used to blog here frequently! Seriously, I have been cranking out the designs, but it's all been for WORK. Tonight I finally stopped to just make a card--not for anything other than just to Make. A. Card. . .  Actually I will have four more cards to post first thing Saturday morning for Papertrey's June release. But for tonight, I started with an old favorite, Rosie Posie, and a sheet of Berry Sorbet cardstock.  I grabbed a Spellbinders Labels Twenty Eight die template because I love its shape and wanted to try a round sentiment tag nested in that bottom curve (Standard Circles Small).

Eventually I pulled out four more stamps sets: Wildflower Garden (for the sentiment), Rosie Posie Step 2 (for the darker lines in the flowers and leaves), Background Basics: Text Style, and Background Basics: Sheet Music. Inks that I used were Berry Sorbet, Pure Poppy, Simply Chartreuse, and Ripe Avocado, as well as some Chamomile Distress Ink for the edges of the cardstock. I dyed off white seam binding with Copic R22 and R27 reinkers to get a multicolored  effect. Well, that pretty much sums it up or tonight--thanks for visiting!

Wishing You Happiness

Welcome! I know--it's been a few days. . . We're remodeling our kitchen, among other things. I'm down to about 1/4 of a floor and about 1/3 of my cabinets. The other cabinets and drawers are scattered throughout the house. Spatula? Corner of the family room. Utensils? Doorway outside the kitchen. Potato peeler? That's easy--in my son's bedroom. You get the picture, right? Yesterday and today I finally had a chance to work on a few projects, most of them to been seen later. Tonight, however, I needed to make a card for a wedding reception that we have coming up soon. That means that I can use a BIG silk bow, right? :-)  I started with one of last month's JustRite stamp sets, Birthday Vintage Labels Four, paired with one of this month's background sets, Leafy Background. I knew that I wanted a larger format card, so I chose a Spellbinders 5" x 7" Enchanted Labels Twenty Eight for that pink mat layer on the bottom. Next I chose a Grand Labels Four to cut a cream  piece of cardstock that I had stamped with the Leafy Background.

I used the smaller die from  5" x 7" Enchanted Labels Twenty Eight  to cut a cream mat layer, then added the focal image (from Birthday Vintage Labels Four), cut with JRP's Vintage Labels Four die template. I found that little "love" sentiment in the Get Well Labels Twenty stamp set, and trimmed it with a Charmed I'm Sure die template. The pink silk ribbon is from May Arts--ties beautifully and feels luscious! That's it for my wedding reception card. . . or it will be as soon as I finish the inside. ;-) Thanks for visiting!

Get Well Wishes and Sweet Lace

Welcome! Today I have a get well card to share. The Sweet Lace Background stamp below is supposed to be today's JustRite June release set, but I had to combine it with another one of yesterday's sets, Chicken Soup Labels Four, because that soup label was just begging to be paired with the lace background--they're both about comfort, right? 

Here is the Sweet Lace background. I used a dark red ink on red cardstock this time, but I'm thinking I should try it in white pigment ink on cardstock weight vellum next time. :-) 

When I saw the chicken soup label, I pulled out a can of Campbell's soup from my pantry to try to get some visual cues from that. Did you know that there is a LOT of gold on a chicken soup label? I tried embossing the label in gold first and carefully coloring it with my Copic markers, but I didn't love it that way. So I restamped it in red, but cut out that spoon and mounted it on foam tape. I liked that better! Besides Spellbinders Labels Four, I also used the Gold Labels Four and Charmed I'm Sure for the tag. (Labels Four is on sale for 20% off here through June 10.)

Would you like to see more projects made with the Sweet Lace Background stamp or the Doilies and Lace set? Here are some links for you to visit!

JustRite Inspiration
Debbie Olson  (HERE)
Eva Dobilas
Darsie Bruno
Marisa Job
Michele Kovack
Angela Barkhouse
Kathy Jones 
Margie Higuchi 
Barb Schram

Blessed and Kept: Get Well Labels Twenty

Welcome! Today I have a sweet encouragement card to share using one of the JustRite June Releases, Get Well Labels Twenty.

The Get Well Labels Twenty stamp set coordinates with the Spellbinders Labels Twenty die template set, which I used for both the card shape and the focal image panel. (Labels Twenty is on sale at the JustRite site for 20% off through June 10.) I hand-trimmed that blue-green layer from an image in the Get Well Labels Twenty set stamped on a pretty new pad of Crate Paper Little Bo Peep 6" x 6" paper.

I heat embossed the floral layer with detail white embossing powder, using the largest stamp in the set and Versamark ink. I hand-trimmed that blue-green layer from an image in the Get Well Labels Twenty set stamped on a pretty new pad of Crate Paper Little Bo Peep 6" x 6" paper. My finished card size is approximately 5-1/2" x 4" when folded.

Would you like to see more projects with the Get Well Labels Twenty set? Then be sure to browse the following blogs, and thank you for visiting!

JustRite Inspiration
Eva Dobilas
Kathy Jones 
Darsie Bruno
Margie Higuchi
Heidi Blankenship 
Marisa Job
Michele Kovack 
Sheri Holt 
Angela Barkhouse

Enjoy Your Day: Let Your Soul Sing

Welcome! Today I have a card to share that uses one of the June JustRite release sets, Let Your Soul Sing, shown fully below. 

As you can see, there are several possibilities for different branch/bird, and flower combos--a fun set to play with!

I used three different Spellbinders die template sets on this card: two from the Grand Ovals set (card base, pink front, and focal image oval), one from Grand Decorative Ovals One, and a little banner from Nested Lacey Pennants. While my oval die was still on top of the focal image panel, I stamped the green layer with my chalk inks, then separately stamped the pink layer on another scrap of cardstock so that I could cut out the pink blossoms and attach them with foam tape. Also before removing the die, I used my Copic Airbrush System and a BG02 to airbrush some sky on top of the green layer (before adding my pink flowers).

If you are looking for a good deal on some Spellbinders dies, ALL Spellbinders dies on the JustRite website are 20% off right now. . . Would you like to see more projects with Let Your Soul Sing? You're in luck! Enjoy the links below, and thanks for visiting!

JustRite Inspiration
Debbie Olson (HERE)
Eva Dobilas
Darsie Bruno
Heidi Blankenship
Michele Kovack
Marisa Job
Barb Schram
Angela Barkhouse
Margie Higuchi
Kathy Jones
Sheri Holt

We Support You

Welcome! Obviously I didn't get to my computer on Monday to post a card for Memorial Day. We spent the day with family. I still wanted to post my card, an "Any Hero" card for Operation Write Home.  If you get a minute, I would love for you to read the linked page above on "Any Hero" cards, and then get involved. Operation Write Home is a great cause, and Any Hero cards are definitely not limited to Memorial Day!

I still need to hand write a note inside, but I thought I could use a sentiment from Papertrey's Military Hero set. (You probably can't see it, but I used some sparkly Versamagic to stamp the fireworks stamp from the Red, White & Blue set as well.)

For the star and circle images, I used PTI's Military Stars stamp set--an oldie but goodie.  I used three Spellbinders die template sets on the card front: Standard Circles Large, Pinking Circles, and Classic Postage Stamp. Papers are from Bo Bunny's 6" x 6" Liberty Collection.  I machine-ruffled some tea-dyed twill by stitching a line of long stitches and then pulling the bottom thread to ruffle it. Buttons are PTI's Vintage Cream buttons. Well, that's it for tonight. I hope you're having a great week!

Celebrate Your Graduation

Welcome! I'm hoping to get a Memorial Day card made and posted on Monday, but I have a graduation card that I can post today from the Calgary airport. I'm headed home today; Sherrie Siemens and I had a great time with the Calgary contingent at the Copic Color & Ink Workshop this weekend! 

Back to my masculine graduation card: because this card was for a home school grad, I didn't have school colors as a starting point. (School colors are always a great  starting point!) For inks I chose PTI's True Black, Summer Sunrise, Pure Poppy, and Blueberry Sky. 

I wanted to keep the look clean and graphic; rather than using background paper, I simply used a couple of my Spellbinders A-2 Matting Basics A die templates--the smaller one to cut and emboss the sentiment panels on both the inside and outside, and the larger one to simply impress (without cutting) a frame in the Smokey Shadow cardstock. Stamp sets that I used were Papertrey Ink's Square Prints, Celebrations, and numbers from For the Graduate. That's one more graduation card down! Thanks for visiting.

Congrats to the {Girl} Grad

Welcome!  Today I have my next girl grad card to share. I'm headed to Calgary to spend the weekend with Sherrie Siemens and our Calgary Copic girls, so my husband needed all five six (now he tells me!) graduation cards before I left. :-) For this card I used Papertrey Ink's Congrats All Ways stamp set, combined with the numbers from For the Graduate. Patterned papers are from Carta Bella's new So Noted 6" x 6" paper pad.

I thought that someone might have a question on how I got that card base with my Spellbinders Grand Labels Four die template, so I took a picture. I used the next to largest die template, making the folded card base about 5-1/2" wide and slightly less than 4" tall. I also trimmed the tips off after scoring and folding the die-cut shape, as you can see above. I did that to allow the card to sit flat on the bottom instead of wobbling from side to side on that pretty point. 

For the inside sentiment, I used Papertrey Ink's For the Graduate stamp set, stamped in Berry Sorbet ink.

The flowers are cut with Spellbinders Rose Creations die template set, from white coffee filters. I then dripped some Copic colorless blender on the filter-cuts, and then Copic R22 for the blossoms and Copic YG23 for the leaves. (Rose Creations is a simple floral die set to use because it does not require winding. Sometimes I'm winding-challenged. ;-}) The focal panel is cut with a Spellbinders Labels Four die template (largest one in the set), and then trimmed just the same as the card base and mat layers.

Okay--off to Calgary now! I'll have some guy grad cards for you a little later this week. Thanks for visiting!

Celebrate Your Special Day

Graduation cards. . . I need at least five this year--three guy cards and two girl cards. I thought I would go graphic and clean for my guy cards, but vintage and girlie for the other two. I had intended to get at least three made today, but considering that it's 11pm, I think that ship has sailed! I started with JustRite's Birthday Vintage Labels Four stamp set. (Graduation qualifies as a "special day," right?)

Since I had recently acquired some envelopes for  5" x 7" cards, I pulled out some larger dies to play with on tonight's card: Spellbinders 5" x 7" Matting Basics A, 5" x 7" Detailed Scallops, Resplendent Rectangles, Stately Circles, and JustRite's Vintage Labels Four dies. Patterned paper is from an old K&Company pad, *I think.* (I don't have the cover any more--just this one favorite, hoarded sheet.)  I dyed the ribbon with my Copic reinkers to add a punch of color and coordinate with the darkest shade in the background roses. The pink card base is PTI's Sweet Blush cardstock, and self-adhesive pearls are from my Zva Creative stash. That's it for tonight. Hoping for a more productive day tomorrow!

Yes, Still Kicking!

Oh, yes--still kicking! I've been stamping too, but almost all of it is for the Papertrey Ink release on Wednesday. So what if I share a couple of things I've been playing with in conjunction with our Copic Color and Ink Workshops? For the card above, I was playing with Copic Various Inks (Reinkers), a Papertrey Ink stamp set, Stylish Sentiments Birthday, and two Spellbinders die templates from the Classic Rectangles Large and Classic Scalloped Rectangles Small sets.

Since a small part of my class day involves doodling, I've been doodling like a madwoman. True confessions: While I've always loved to draw realistically, I'd never really done much doodling before. But there's nothing like teaching something to make you dive right in. It's seriously addictive. . . No, we don't color our doodles in class, but with all of the markers that live at my house, who could leave everything in black and white?  I. Need. To. Color. I've also had few CZT ladies in classes; I love watching them work with their intricate, non-representational patterns. (So for you fabulous Tanglers out there, I'm really flirting with danger now, thanks to you: I've been doodling non-representationally too. . . ;-) 

It isn't all doodles and splashing ink in my part and Colleen Schaan's part of the Copic Color and Ink Workshop though: we also spend over four hours teaching coloring various skintones and hairstyles--that's a LOT of skin and hair--probably even enough for you diehard "didn't get enough time coloring faces and hair" people! While Colleen and I are playing with backgrounds and skintones and hair, our co-teacher (either Cindy Lawrence or Sherrie Siemens) is working with airbrushing and using Copics on a variety of surfaces. Each instructor teaches the same class for two consecutive days, while the participants are divided up and attend one class the first day, and the other class the second day. So far class sizes have been small, which means good one-on-one time. If you are interested in attending a Copic Color and Ink Workshop, there are still a few locations left for this year: 

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Chicago

Glen Allen, VA

Portland, OR

and Dallas.

Do you want to come get inky with us? :-)

The only prerequisite is that you are Copic Standard Certified. Lori Craig, Marianne Walker, Cindy Lawrence, and I all have Copic Standard Certification classes in the near future as well. That's it until Wednesday morning bright and early, when I have several cards to share. Thanks for visiting!