Thinking Inking

Farm Girl Thank You

 

Welcome! I'm still in South Carolina--no light tent setup here--but I had one last card almost finished that I had packed to finish and share. This one uses MFT's Doodle Garden Happy Harvest stamp set. I know that it's a fall themed stamp, but I am using it as a thank you note and stayed away from the fall color scheme.

COPIC Markers used:

Overalls: B91, B93, and B95. Next I used a 0 Colorless Blender and s crap of denim to add texture to the overalls. 
Skin: E50, E11, E13, and E93 (cheeks)
Basket and shoes: E30, E31, and E25
Blouse: C00, C1, and C3
Fruit in Basket: R32, R37 Y32, YR12, YR18, G43, G46, W00, W3,
Shadows and Cast Shadows: C1, C3; BV000, BV01 (cast); W00, W3 (around feet)
Sky: B0000, 0

I used a Spellbinders 5 x 7 Matting Basics A to cut and emboss my focal image, and a Numbers and Letters M-Bossabilities folder on PTI's Spring Rain cardstock for the background. Seam Binding is dyed with a Copic B41 reinker/Various Inks, and a few drops of Colorless Blender. I had fun with this little image--she's a cutie! Thanks for visiting,

Debbie

Miss You!

Welcome! I'm starting to feel like a stranger to my own blog these days. I'm in South Carolina visiting my family for a few days, having taught a couple of Copic Workshop classes in Charlotte, NC, this past weekend. The Charlotte group was delightful--I thoroughly enjoyed being there! My trip there, however, was less than delightful. Some people have travel issues, and I'm one of them. ;-) My Friday morning flight was cancelled on Thursday morning due to an incoming snow and ice storm. So I had to leave on Thursday from a different airport and had only two hours to pack for both class and the trip on to SC after class. Then our departure was delayed an hour, meaning that we (son and I) missed the connecting early flight to Charlotte from Detroit. That's okay--Delta got us there, and that counts. After class and packing up/shipping on Saturday, we were supposed to take an Amtrak train from Charlotte to our little town in Upstate South Carolina. Unfortunately, the Yellow Cab (pre-scheduled at 10pm for 1:20am) never showed up. A second taxi company was called and promised to be there in 15 minutes. They never came either. (I couldn't make this up if I tried--honest!) Half an hour before the train was supposed to leave, I begged the desk attendant at our hotel to send someone in the hotel shuttle to get us to the train station. We arrived at the station thirteen minutes before the train left, and got on the train three minutes before it left. Really. It's *always* an adventure. . .

Before I left I was able to get a few cards finished anyway, so I actually do have something to share today--besides travel woes! The card above was for a sweet kid-let friend, using the MFT Pure Innocence Wish You Were Here stamp set.

These were the Copic Markers that I used, along with a Brown Copic 0.1 Multiliner with which I drew some wood texture into the bench.

I used a Spellbinders Classic Rectangles LG  die template to cut and emboss the focal image, a Charmed I'm Sure die template for the sentiment tag (evidently out of stock), and On the Edge for that heart border. I dyed the seam binding with some Copic B95 and colorless blender. Papers are from Carta Bella's Cool Summer 6 x 6 paper pad. That's it for tonight's card! Here's hoping that your travel adventures aren't quite as adventuresome as mine. ;-}

Debbie

Related articles

You're the Coolest!

Copic Classes Page Updated. . .

Okay, can you guess what I was doing for two and a half days this past week?

Maybe this will help. :-}

Yes, filling and cleaning all of my COPIC class markers! My sweet friend Lori Craig had told us about a conversation she had with one of the ladies in a certification class; she said that she filled her markers by weight rather than just guessing or waiting for the tip to start looking shiny.  So I thought that I would try that this time and see if my fills would last a bit longer. I'm convinced that they will. I was really surprised at how much ink some of my markers held--more than I would ever have put just counting drop by drop! So, we'll see how they do in Charlotte, NC this coming weekend. . . 

***See COMMENTS on this post if you are looking for more specifics.
I answered questions there. Thanks!***

Speaking of Charlotte this coming weekend--I have updated my Copic Classes Page. If you are thinking about coming to a Copic class near you this year,  you should be aware that the classes are filling quickly. Don't wait. :-) To know when a class will be held in your area SIGN UP on Copic Class mailing list. If a class come to your state or an adjacent state to you, you will receive an email alerting you that the class is opening. That's it for today--thanks for stopping by!

Debbie

Design-abilties Blog Hop: Rose Postcard Sympathy

Welcome to the third Design-abilities Blog Hop! When the Spellbinders® Blog Team wanted to do something fresh, fun, and creative to bring our team together, we decided to have a blog hop on the sixteenth of every other month, linking to each designer. This blog hop is just for creative inspiration; we are not sponsored by Spellbinders Paper Arts®. Sometimes we might not all be able to participate, but we would still encourage you to visit all of the Blog Team Members and check out their blogs.  You will find a variety of ideas for die cutting, papercrafting, mixed media, DIY projects, jewelry, home decor, lots of tutorials, and techniques.

My card today is a sympathy card. We recently lost a dear family member after a two-year fight against cancer, and I wanted a special card for his sweetheart. I often heard him tell his doctors and nurses that he'd been "married to the best woman in the world for sixty-three years!" That kind of love is pretty amazing, and I was blessed to see it modeled up close and personal for the last eighteen years. 

Before stamping a JustRite Rose Postcard Cling Background stamp for my focal image, I used a Spellbinders Resplendent Rectangles die template on Kraft cardstock to cut, emboss, and mask. I stamped the rose postcard in Memento Rich Cocoa ink, leaving the die template in place while I stamped to protect/mask the edges of the kraft cardstock. While I love to color, I wanted to try just loosely airbrushing this image. Yep, that's a trick for somebody with control issues. . . ;-) I used only the three Copic markers shown above, along with my Copic Airbrush System, to airbrush the background. You can see in the next picture that I used a white Prismacolor pencil to add a few highlights to my mid-toned cardstock.

I also airbrushed a second Resplendent Rectangles die cut for the card base. TIP: I use a pretty heavy cardstock for my card bases, so I sometimes have a hard time cutting through two folded layers of  a card base, especially when I am using detailed dies. For this card base, I cut two separate cream base layers, then scored the bottom one about 1/2" from the top. Then I glued that half inch at the top to create a tent fold. That sounds more complicated than it was--just cut two layers, score the bottom one so that you get a nice fold, and glue. Your fold is 1/2" down from the top of the card.  I dyed some natural seam binding to coordinate with the roses and threaded it through the slots of the die cut. Stick pins are both by Maya Road.

I'd love it if you had time to visit my blog team friends as well, though not everyone is able to participate each month. Thank you for visiting today!

Debbie

Becca Feeken

Darsie Bruno

Heidi Blankenship

Linda Duke 

Michelle Woerner

Seth Apter

Sherry Cheever

One Heart is Not Enough

Welcome! Today I have a Valentine card to share, using Papertrey Ink's Confetti Garland Borders stamp set and coordinating die, along with a sentiment from the Happy Hearts stamp set.  I fell in love with window cards back when I made this Birds on a Wire card back in January, so it certainly wasn't a stretch to use my Confetti Garland Borders to make the same kind of card! 

In addition to the confetti Garland Borders dies, I also used the Double Ended Banners die and Spellbinders Classic Rectangles Large and Classic Rectangles Small dies for the window construction. Papers are from PTI's Simple Valentine paper pad. Ink colors are Pure Poppy, Hibiscus Burst, and Raspberry Fizz. Card is 4-1/4" x 5-1/2". finished size. 

That's it for today--thanks for visiting!

Debbie

Reverse Confetti Blog Hop: Hey, Foxy!

Welcome! On today's post I'm guest hopping with the Reverse Confetti crew. I have another Freida Fox card for you, but I used a bit different color scheme for her from the one that I did last month. I guess this one's not a red fox. ;-) I had a sweet 6" x 6" pad of Crate Paper Flea Market papers and thought that more neutral tones might work as well with a fox as the reddish browns did. 

I used several Copic markers to color Freida, including: RV21, RV23, RV25, RV29, E41, E42, E43, E44, E49, W1, W5, BG11, BG13, G40, G43, Y11, Y14, Y38. I used a touch of B000 in the background as well. 

You might be able to see layering on Freida from this angle; I wanted some added dimension on her, and  it was simpler to trim parts of her from a second stamped/colored image and then layer with foam tape than to mask that large of an area to keep my die from cutting all of the way through the image. For dies I used Spellbinders Curved Matting Basics A and B. I glued some tiny rhinestones on to the frames of Freida's glasses--she's "stylin'!"

Ready to see more Reverse Confetti goodness? There is a $15 Gift Certificate up for grabs, randomly chosen from a commenter on one of the blog posts in the hop. Comments will be valid toward the GC until Monday, February 10, at noon, CST.  You may have arrived here from Amy Kolling's blog; next on the list after me is Leigh Penner's blog. If you arrived here without hopping, you can always find a full list at the Reverse Confetti Blog--happy hopping!

Debbie

Rose Postcard

Welcome! Today I have a 5" x 7" vintage floral card to share, made with JustRite's Rose Postcard Cling Background stamp, shown below. 

These are the Copic markers that I used to color the Rose Postcard image on Kraft cardstock--love those RV60's! I then used a white Prismacolor pencil to add some highlights to the image. I sponged quite a bit of  distress ink on the edges of the kraft cardstock before using the side of my scissors to scrape and distress the cardstock edge. 

For the background, I used PTI's Autumn Rose cardstock, embossed with a  Spellbinders 5 x 7 Enchanted Labels Twenty die template. I don't always remember that I can use my dies to create great texture, even if I don't want to cut with them--it really is a neat effect! I dyed natural seam binding to coordinate, using RV63 for one length and RV66 for a longer length. Someone had asked me a few days ago how to tie a double bow. The answer is. . . that I don't know. . . I tie a single bow, and then use a glue dot to attach a second bow onto the top of the first. Is that bow-cheating? ;-)

I hope you get a chance to see what the rest of the JustRite DT girls linked below have done with the Rose Postcard Cling Background stamp--I think you'll like what you see! Thanks for visiting today,

Debbie

JustRite Inspiration Blog

Debbie Olson (HERE)

Marisa Job 

Becca Feeken

Kellie Fortin

Kathy Jones

Eva Dobilas

Kristi Schurr

Darsie Bruno

Michele Kovack 

Heidi Blankenship 

Sheri Holt 

Kazan Clark

Birthday Hydrangea: Hydrangeas Vintage Labels Seven

Welcome! For the next couple of days I have two card that I made back in December for CHA and can finally share. First is a birthday card using JustRite's Hydrangea Vintage Labels Seven clear stamps, along with their Diamond Filigree Cling Background Stamp. The background is stamped with Versamark ink and heat embossed using clear embossing powder. I love the richness of a tone on tone effect, as well as the added texture that heat embossing creates.

I knew that I planned to fussy-cut the hydrangeas image, but I wanted a graduated background behind the flower. I cut a piece of cardstock with a JustRite Vintage Labels Seven die, then airbrushed with Copic YR23, G43, and V22, in conjunction with my Copic Airbrush System.

Here are the Copic Sketch colors that I used on the hydrangea and butterfly. (Click on any image to enlarge.)

I coated the butterfly with clear glitter to add a bit of sparkle to my card. (Only the butterfly is bumped up with foam tape; the hydrangea is flat; its dimension is created with shading.) The birthday wishes tag is cut with a Spellbinders Back to Basics Tags die template. Ribbon is white seam binding dyed with Copic V22 and a few drops of Colorless Blender. TIP: Adding colorless blender before you add reinker helps the reinker to spread throughout the ribbon more easily. I use inexpensive sandwich bags and dye about a yard or so of seam binding at a time, then put the extra length in my ribbon drawer; I always check there first before I dye more to coordinate with a card.

Would you like to see what other JustRite DT members have come up with on the Hydrangea Vintage Labels Clear stamp set? You'll find some great inspiration on the following blogs. Thanks for visiting!

Debbie

JustRite Inspiration Blog

Kristi Schurr 

Debbie Olson  (HERE)

Becca Feeken

Kathy Jones

Kellie Fortin

Michele Kovack

Eva Dobilas 

Heidi Blankenship

Angela Barkhouse 

Kazan Clark

Sheri Holt  

Darsie Bruno

Sending Sunshine and Smiles. . .

Well, it's a bittersweet day today on my blog . . . I have been privileged to be on the Papertrey Ink design team since the company began seven years ago, and I have loved all of the wonderful stamp sets and accessories that I have been able to work with through the years. Nichole Heady is one of the most talented designers that I've ever met. Hardly a month passes that I don't see what she has done with the new releases and think, "WOW--I wish I'd thought of that!"

So, it was with mixed emotions that I realized I needed to step down as a Papertrey Ink designer this year. Nichole, Jane, and Julie have been such a blessing to me, and I will always be thankful for the opportunities that I have had with PTI. We have had some huge health challenges in our extended family for the past two years, however, and I am needing more time to meet needs at home. I will still be using many Papertrey Ink stamp sets, no doubt. After all, who can resist them after that fabulous monthly countdown? :-} 

On to today's card: I used the PTI Doodlie Do stamp set, colored with Copic markers, along with the Spiral Notebook Page die for my focal image. Since I was coloring in the local library while my son studied, I didn't get a picture of my markers all lined up; but I did write down the colors that I used: RV21, Rv23, RV25, RV29, Y15, Y19, YR65, YR18, YG01, YG17, and BG10 along with the Colorless Blender for the pale blue in the background. On the card front I used Background Basics: Twinkle as well as Background Basics: Stitching. That sweet little white lacy border cut is done with one of my favorites, the Filigree Border Die. Cardstock is Stamper's Select White, Limeade Ice, Orange Zest, and Raspberry Fizz.I did a bit of stitching "just because"--how does one stamp without a sewing machine? ;-)

Don't forget to check out all of the festivities for Papertrey Ink's seventh birthday--challenges, contests, prizes, games, and activities! Thanks for visiting,

Debbie

You're the Coolest!

Welcome! I had promised you a few days ago that I would share the card for my second little Texas niece, so maybe this COLD day in Upper Michigan is a good day to do that. :-)  This image is from the MFT You're the Coolest clear stamp set, which I purchased HERE. It is stamped in Memento Tuxedo black ink on X-Press It Blending Card. I took pictures as I colored, stepped out below. (As always, CLICK on any pictures that you want to see larger.)

Here you see my skintones (four markers on the left--the R81 was for her cheeks), and pants/hat colors (three Copic Sketch markers on the right).

Here I have colored her coat (the three Copic markers on the left) and her hair (the three Copic markers on the right). I love those RV60's! Although there are no really pale RV60's the RV00 worked well as a base tone.

I finished her scarf and gloves here, though I forgot to include the RV66 that I used for the hearts on the scarf.

Here are the Copics that I used to color her boots, the snowball, and her hatband. (I added some glitter to the snowball after I die cut and embossed the focal image.)

I chose a Spellbinders 5 x 7 Matting Basics A die template to  trim and emboss my focal image, and then I used a Copic 0.3 Black Multiliner to draw some ground at her feet. I used a Spellbinders Nested Lacey Pennants die template to cut and emboss the "you're the coolest" sentiment, trimming it to length after I had stamped the sentiment. The little button is one of PTI's Lavender Moon Vintage Buttons, and background cardstock is also Lavender Moon. I used a Spellbinders Dainty Dots M-Bossabilities folder to add the dotted texture, then rubbed a PTI Fresh Snow ink pad over the dots and edges to make the texture show up a bit more. 

That's it for my second little niece's card. I hope you have a great weekend!

Debbie