Thinking Inking

Garden Whimsy Meets TJ's Z-fold

My Technique Junkies Newsletter came today;  Pat and her team always do a great job with the newsletter, and this issue is no exception. Her online bonus was a z-fold card. Now I admit that I didn't actually measure or look up the directions, but I definitely borrowed Pat's cool fold here!

I wanted to play with some of my new SU designer paper, so I used its reds and greens with Garden Whimsy and my Spellbinders Scalloped Oval Nestability die. I also used an old olive mini brad and Always Artichoke grosgrain ribbon. I used a Coluzzle to cut the butterfly layer since I wanted parts of the butterfly to extend from the shape.  The ladybug body is popped up on a dimensional.

On the inside I stamped the companion greeting to this set, and that was it--a simple fold that I'm sure I'll try again.  (Thanks, Pat!)

Challenge: Distressing

Another SCS design challenge that I made a sample for was Michele Boyer's Distressing challenge. Michele (Shell9999) is the queen of vintage! (She's also amazing at uniquely shaped cards.)

If you are uploading for Michele's challenge, your keyword should be DTGDShel9999.  Keep in mind that posting on these challenges is for Splitcoast Dirty Dozen Design Team Fan Club members only, but I"m pretty sure that the gallery (here) is available for everyone to see.  Posting for this challenge begins at 9am PST on Monday.

I used the SU Close as a Memory set here, along with Ruby Red, Cameo Coral, Old Olive, and Always Artichoke markers direct to rubber and misted with water, then I trimmed the image with my Spellbinders Nestability plain ovals, sewed the focal layer to a layer of Old Olive, and smooshed it into Versamark. I then coated with two layer of clear UTEE/Glassy Glaze, but it in the freezer for about five minutes, and cracked the finish as soon as I removed it. I then sponged brown ink into the cracks to accentuate the cracked glass look, and I added little sticky pearls as flower centers.

For the background layer, I used some of the new Basic Grey Infuse in a 6" x 6" pad, wadded it up, sanded it, and inked the edges in brown--anything for Michele!  The tag is from a retired SU hostess set.  I hope that you've had a chance to participate in these SCS challenges. Have a great day!

On an unrelated note, I truly appreciate those of you who have nominated me as a "Rockin' Blogger"--thank you so much!  I just wanted to spring an idea on you that Geeta (Texas Longhorns at Crafty Engineer) proposed here; basically, it's a twist on the nomination concept--actually sending our cards to people who need them. . . I don't know about you, but I am far better at making cards than I am at actually mailing them or giving them away.  I need to do better, and Geeta reminded me of that. I've already given two away today, and I'll try to do better next week as well. If you are card-sending-challenged like me, will you consider taking Geeta's challenge too?  Thanks! 

Your Friendship Warms My Heart!

Nichole Heady is a genius, in case you didn't know that already!  When she posted yesterday on her blog about using these Spellbinders Nestability dies to emboss a card front, I had one of those "Wow!  I could have had a V-8" reactions."  What a simple thing, but it had never occurred to me. . .  That's why Nichole's a stamping genius--she sees the possibilities!

I cut my PaperTrey Stamper's Select card stock to 4-1/4 x 8-1/2". (I used Stamper's Select because it is a heavier weight than my other white card stock, so the embossing shows up better.) I used one of the plain square dies to get that embossed edge, just the way Nichole shows on her blog here.

The rest was simple: I used some Memory Box Begonia paper with a scalloped square die, and a plain square with my little Lockhart quilt stamp. (Ellen sells these here.)  I colored with my Copic markers (YR31, R20, and a tiny touch of R27 on the tip of my R20 to get the darker pink edges.  If you happen to be using Ellen's color choices,YR21 would also work for the yellow. I just don't have that one yet. Also, R14 would work better than R27 to get a darker pink--again, I don't have that one yet, but it's coming!) I enhanced some squares just a bit with my Preschool pencils because I wanted some texture to show. That's it--simple, homespun.  I love quilts!

Tomorrow I have another SCS Challenge sample to show you--and this one's distressing, literally!

Are You Playing?

It's a birthday: the Splitcoast Dirty Dozen Design Team is three years old this month!  If you are a member of the DD Fan Club, you can click here for Julie's explanation of the challenges and festivities surrounding this birthday. If you are not, there's never been a better time to show your support for SplitCoastStampers by joining.  I can't begin to say how much I have gleaned from the ready availability of SCS and its galleries and resources over the years.  I would imagine that most of you have found it to be an invaluable resource as well.  Enough gushing, and time for card information (even though the gushing is deserved!)

Because I had too much going on this week to issue my own challenges, I volunteered to be a sample maker for some of the other current and former Dirty Dozen. Jami Sibley's More is More challenge was one of my assignments: briefly, doing two similar cards, but kicking one up a notch. Here's what I came up with. Both cards use the new SU set Garden Whimsy and new designer paper, Cutie Pie. I used a scalloped punch to punch a mat layer of So Saffron on both cards, as well as some of the new stitched pomegranate ribbon on both cards. For the card on the left, I added more color to the butterfly, popped his wings up as a second layer, and added stamped stitched circles and dots with the PaperTrey Borders and Corner Circle set--love these shaped sets!  I also added a mat layer of Pomegranate and some So Saffron mini brads. I'm hoping that this is what Jami was after--More is More! If you choose to participate in Jami's challenge, you can post in this gallery which opens this morning at 9am, PST. Please use Keyword DTGDJami (no spaces).

Thanks for visiting!

With Gratitude

Today I pulled out two of my new SU stamp sets to play with: With Gratitude and Brocade, and my old stand-by, Linen. The Brocade is stamped in Really Rust ink on Really Rust card stock, and the Linen is stamped in Close to Cocoa ink. I used my Pumpkin Patch Spectrum pad for the leaf strip, stamping it on fairly wet Ivory Naturals card stock for a softer background, then stamping it again after it was dry to get a few more-defined leaves. The raised leaves are stamped on So Saffron card stock and sponged with Close to Cocoa ink. I used the new ivory taffeta ribbon--love it, by the way!  It ties so much more easily than the thicker ribbons.

I hope you have a lovely day!

Sweet Baby Girl

I'm working on an SU swap tonight--can't be late for Jami!  But before I could start, I needed a baby card for a precious baby girl who is in Milwaukee Children's Hospital. She's about three weeks old now and has been there since birth struggling with various health issues.

I used Ellen's stamp of the month, the Lockhart stack of presents, as my focal image. I colored it with my Copic markers in the following colors: RV11, RV34, YR31, and C1.  (You can find some good Copic information here if you have some and are beginning to play with them.) I also used my Spellbinder's Nestability Scalloped and Plain rectangles, Memory Box Sugar Collection paper, and light pink stitched ribbon from Really Reasonable Ribbon. I love this little stack of presents!  I made a baby boy card with it tonight while I had it out, as well as a Christmas card. (Yes, I know that I should have been working on my swap, but I was having fun coloring. . .)  The sweet baby girl stamp on the front of the envelope, as well as the congratulations inside the card, are from Simply Said by My Favorite Things.

I will probably post more about CHA a little later this week, but I decided that it was time I actually made something instead of simply talking about it today. Have a lovely day!

Let's talk paper!

Today I'd like to show you some of the lovely papers that I saw at CHA this past weekend. I'll link to the company or line whenever possible, and I have tried to show only photos that I asked permission to take. (If I have a picture taken at your booth, and you do not want it shown, please e-mail me, and I will happily remove it.)

One interesting couple whom I met were friends of Karen's, Fred and Dani of Rubber Soul. I'm posting this in the paper category because Fred and Dani also had some lovely paper, reminiscent of Memory Box papers with clean, graphic lines. Dani has also recently started a blog which you can see here. They humored me and posed for a photo--thanks, Fred and Dani!

From BoBunny, I really loved the richness of the Fall Festival papers (shown here), as well as Homespun Holidays, Napa, and Tuscany collections.

A company that was new to me was Sweetwater, with a fresh, clean, doodley-style and a very dramatic black and white booth. I liked their Jingle, Still Fishing, and Basic Black collections.

Another new-to-me company was Imaginisce , which ran the style-gamut from clean, graphic collections to elegant vintage collections.  I am looking forward to playing with some of their new Christmas collection, Candy Cane Lane, when it is available. Out on a Whim had an updated country air. Now and Forever consisted entirely of  a white-to-beige spectrum, but it was anything BUT "boring beige."  What a fabulous wedding album it would make! Timeless was a vintage collection, sophisticated and chic.

The K&Company booth was breathtaking, though I wasn't able to get a catalog from them and was told when I asked permission that they preferred no pictures to be taken. I adored their Classic K collection (and would still love to have a catalog in the remote possibility that anyone from K&Company ever sees this!)   Daisy D's had a gorgeous Christmas collection called Snowflakes and Holly. (Sorry--I don't think it's on their website yet--probably will be coming soon, I'm guessing.) Besides traditional Christmas colors, it also incorporated a medium blue-gray--vintage and elegant!

Webster's Pages was another new-to-me paper company. I'm not even sure how to characterize their 12" x 12" papers, except that they were fabulous--perhaps with a European flair. My favorite collections were Pink Lemonade, Coco, and Winter Wonderland. They had some amazing accordion albums and keepsake boxes as well.

I already told my funny story about Cosmo Cricket yesterday, but their products are what really set them apart. One was their Biography 101, an 8" x 8" album that fit into a suitcase, with a shadowbox opposite the album. It was oh-so-beautiful! New paper collections included Little Boys, with airplanes--too cute!--and Little Girls, a collection so lovely that it it really makes me regret that I have no little girls. (Trust me; I'll find a reason to use it anyway.) I also liked that papers will be offered in 8 x 8 sheets--perfect for card makers. I need every single one!

The Melissa Francis booth was so lovely that I went there three times. . . The first time I might have drooled--figuratively speaking anyway. The second time I dragged others with me to share my joy!  Melissa Frances had some seriously amazing  frames and alterable boxes, as well as papers (which enables me to put them into this paper post, even though I mentioned them for their alterables yesterday).

I loved their vintage holiday collection as well as their individually named papers and tags. Their shaped albums were to-die-for, as were their vintage hinged boxes, frames, and paper mache craft and scrap pieces. I could seriously use one of everything in the booth--no, make that two.

Well, that's probably enough for today. I hope that you have enjoyed seeing these scrumptious products even a fraction as much as I did!  Thanks for visiting.

Back from CHA

Where do I begin? Going to CHA was such a fabulous experience: I have never before seen so much pooled creativity and so many cool toys in my life! I met many people who felt like old friends because I "know" them from SplitCoastStampers or from blogging. I met editors to whom I've had the privilege of submitting work, and met companies for whom I've created samples. Picture a family reunion with only your favorite relatives, and that might come close! I was able to spend quite a bit of time with Ellen Hutson, Karen Lockhart, Michelle Wooderson, and Trudee Sauer; and I finally got to meet my bloggin' buddy Taylor too (above--Taylor's the young, cute one, and I'm on the left).

From companies for whom I've done some work, I was able to meet Ron from Copic/Imagination International, as well as Kathy (ColoringKate); Jeff, Stacey, and their crew from Spellbinders; Nichole Heady from PaperTrey; and Mitra from Impression-Obsession. Lisa Strahl gave Mish Wooderson and me a great tour of Ranger's booth and products, and I met Bella herself, Emily, and her friend Nicky!  There were so many more SCS'ers--Lindsey/Jacksonbelle, Michele/Shel9999, Joy and Daisy, Heather/Pine, Lisa Johnson, Julie Brooks, Leigh O'Brien and Denise--way too many more to list them all at the moment, but a joy to meet every single one!

I had to keep reminding myself not to let my jaw drop as I looked at the new papers, stamps, dies, and alterables. One funny story for today: I was standing in the Cosmo Cricket booth in sheer amazement at the beauty of it all.  I had already soaked in the new fall line (which reminds me of their beloved Dutch Girl, but in autumn colors and more traditional Dutch patterns) and the new Christmas line which I can't wait to get my hands on. (Okay, there were fabulous new girl and boy lines as well, but I digress.) A lovely lady approached and started talking to me, and I began to gush (no kidding) over how much I'd enjoyed and used Dutch Girl, as well as what gorgeous samples they had.  I stopped myself mid-gush to ask, "Are YOU one of their designers?" She smiled and calmly answered, "Actually my husband and I own the company."  [Can you say "completely starstruck" and almost speechless by this time?] She told me that both she and her husband design the collections, and that she works from her kitchen with children around her--so I met a real-life supermom! After we left the booth I remembered that I had a Dutch Girl-based card in my little portfolio, and at Ellen's and Karen's suggestion, I signed it and ran it back to the booth. She was busy, so I gave it to her husband.  After that I figured I'd better stay away so they wouldn't think they were being stalked! 

I saw some incredibly classy alterables at the Melissa Frances booth--must get some to play with! Other great alterables: 7 Gypsies, Bare Elements, Art Blanche, and Provocraft. A company called Simply Swank had soldered glass pieces with photographs and stamped images inside. Since I already love stained glass, combining stamping and scrapping with stained glass techniques to make tiny treasures is on my must try list! Amazing scrapbook pages were everywhere, in every format.  Many were 12" x 12", but there was also an abundance of mini-albums in every shape imaginable. (I am a mini-album-fan.)

Well, I think I"ll stop babbling for today.  After I have a chance to sort through all of my photos, I'll probably share some more.  Thanks for visiting!

Ta-daa!

I have been working on this little Christmas tree for several days, off and on. I thought I'd leave it here for you while I go to Chicago today.  I started with an approximately 9" tall coronet shape that I got from Karen Lockhart. (If they interest you to play with, I think that Ellen Hutson would probably be able to get them for you.)  I used this one upside down as a tree, but I have made others into something akin to a cornucopia. They are really cute for stuffing candy-filled cello bags into!  Back to the subject at hand, the tree.

For the tree I started with my Spellbinders Scalloped Ovals, and cut a series of graduated ovals from medium-large to medium-small.  Then I cut each of these ovals in half and proceeded to glue them to the coronet, adding a foam dimensional in the center bottom of each half-scallop to hold it away from the one beneath it.  (I was trying to replicate branches.)  When I finished covering the coronet, I used white Liquid Applique for snow, then I started my light bulbs.  I stamped a Christmas light stamp onto translucent shrink plastic and colored each bulb with my Copic Markers--yes, they work on plastic too! I cut them all out, leaving a bit of extra plastic on top so that I could have a piece to glue under the branches.  (I tried several with 1/8" holes above the bulb base to try to string them on some cord, but that plan quickly changed once the cord started fraying.)

I added a few Spellbinders star shapes, cut from white shrink plastic, anywhere I had a vacant space. Next I wrapped the tree in gold metallic cording, made a bow for its top, and tried to glue a star to the top. (I say tried simply because it's been drying for several hours now and still isn't firm! If you make one of these, you might want to top it differently. . . I'm not sure that I like the top, but I didn't have time to keep experimenting.)

Thank you so much Julee T. (Shadowcatcher) of Poetic Artistry and Bethany Paull of It's Not All Black and White for a Rockin' Girl Blogger nomination. You really should go visit their blogs, if you haven't already; both have beautiful work! I am going to opt out on nominating five more people. Instead, please feel free to look at my two blog typelists and pick five blogs that you've never visited before. Now go visit! I'm planing to redo and combine bloglists when I have time, but time has been a precious commodity lately. . . I hope to be able to bring you some neat ideas from CHA. Have a great weekend!

The Good Ship Friendship

Isn't SU's Boatloads of Love just the cutest stamp set? I played with some of my new SU designer paper today, pulling colors from it to color the ship using my COPIC Sketch markers: 0 (clear blender), C1, B000, B21, G40, YG03, YR31, RV34, and a touch of R29. I cut a mask of the ship from Eclipse Tape and used my Copic airbrush system to put in just a tinge of blue sky (B21). The good thing about the mask is that although it took me a few minutes to cut out, I can save it in the stamp box and just whip it on whenever I want to mask in the future. For the water, I used the broad tip to apply a thick line of clear blender (0), then immediately went back in with B000 to try to soften the bottom edge.  I added some pale cool gray (c1) as a shadow anywhere that I wanted to create a bit of dimensionality.

The focal image is cut using a Spellbinders cutting, embossing, and stenciling plain rectangle, and is matted in a companion scalloped rectangle. Ribbon is SU's new Bashful Blue; I'm so glad to have this color of ribbon now!

I still need to finish three more cards before I can think about packing for CHA. . .  If you are going, I hope to see you there! 

Harvest Fruit Basket

Two posts in one day--better call the newspapers! I was working on this little Lockhart basket last  night and ran out of time to finish. So I finished up today and wanted to go ahead and share it. I stamped the basket image on SU's Very Vanilla card stock with Palette Noir Ink and let it air dry for a few hours. (I admit it: I got busy with something else and forgot about it!  You do need to let Palette Noir dry for quite a while on either Whisper White or Very Vanilla, or you need to heat set it on these particular card stocks.  Otherwise the ink will smear when you apply the markers.)

I began by using my Copic airbrush system to slightly tint the background a soft saffron color, YR31. Next I added a touch of shadow at the base of the basket with a cool gray, C1. To color the basket I used a base of E-31, a light tan, with touches of E27, a darker brown. For the leaves I used a base of YG03 and selectively deepened the color in certain leafy areas with G95 and G99. For the apples, I used R29 and a shadow of R-59. One of the really neat things that I have discovered that I can do with these markers is to actually remove color with the colorless blender. So if after all of your blending you realize that you have lost your highlights, you can take the colorless blender and lift some color out to restore highlights--pretty neat, huh?

For the knobbly little winter squash I used a Y19, Y17, and a touch or YR09.  For the pumpkins I used Y17 as a base, followed by YR09 over most of the pumpkin. I wasn't sure if the crook-necked vegetables were Summer squash or gourds, so I opted to color them as gourds because I had enough yellow fruits in the basket already (YG03, YG05, G99).  Finally, I decided to make the small fruits plums because the purple would be a nice color counterpoint to all of the warm colors in the basket.  For the plums I used V01 and V09.

I was very happy with the picture at that point, but I made one more decision that I'm still debating: I decided to make the image a cracked glass image.  I mashed the finished piece into Versamark and sprinkled with clear UTEE (two coats); then I placed this in the freezer for a couple of minutes, pulled it out, and cracked it right away.  What do you think?  I like the cracked glass look, but I lost some of the sharpness of the coloring. I assume that the Versamark reacted slightly with the markers.  Still, I think I'm pleased. . .

I matted the fruit basket with one of my Spellbinders cutting, embossing, and stenciling oval nestabilities dies, and finished with a background of Basic Grey Fruitcake paper and a length of the new SU ivory taffeta ribbon--love that stuff! The gold brads are from Cindy Lyles e-Bay store; they are a bit larger and much shinier than regular gold mini brads.

Thanks for visiting, and have a lovely day!

Baroque and Basic Gray

Mr. Brown finally arrived tonight at about 6:30--after I had a house full of company for dinner!  (I confess that I sneaked out back while they all roasted marshmallows around a campfire to quickly spray clear paint on a couple of sets of blocks so that I could play with my new toys later. I wasn't gone for long!) 

The jury of one is in: I adore SU's new Basic Gray cardstock and ink!  It is so rich and elegant, especially paired with that silky, sumptuous taffeta ribbon.  The new ribbon ties and lays beautifully--ahhhhhh! 

The Baroque background went on and off my wishlist a couple of times, but I'm glad that it was "on" when I ordered.  It is clean and dressy---very useful, in my opinion. I used a new Baroque wheel to wheel both the inside of the card and the envelope as well, but I wheeled them in the lighter Going Gray instead of Basic Gray.

I also tried my Spellbinders cutting, embossing, and stenciling Nestabilities (TM) rectangles here; I used the plain rectangle for the sentiment, (also from a new SU word set), and paired a scalloped rectangle that was only slightly larger than the plain white rectangle. I thought that the dressiness of the Basic Gray and taffeta deserved a more serious, less whimsical scallop. The tiny scallop just barely peeking out from the plain rectangle works for me.

Another product review: I ordered the new SU caddy that holds buttons and eyelets, and I love it!  It is completely full already. I could use a second, but I won't. . .  It spins easily and feels plenty sturdy. Now if I could just get my desk clean enough to have room to set it up there. Thanks for visiting!