Thinking Inking

Copic Marker Maintenance Part 2: Refilling and Cleaning

Welcome back! I have a LOT of pictures and information to share tonight. I'm hoping that it gives you confidence to perform basic maintenance on your Copic Markers. It's simple, truly!

On THIS POST I showed you how to fill a Copic Sketch marker with Copic Various Ink if you are using the jeweler's scale method. I like the scale method, but it certainly isn't necessary to purchase a scale in order to (1) KNOW when your markers are dry, or (2) REFILL your markers. 

How do I know when my marker is dry? The marker above is definitely in need of some TLC!

• If your marker, especially the Medium Broad/Chisel tip, is not coloring solidly, it is probably dry.
• If your Super Brush nib is not blending well or if it is streaking, it may be dry. 
• If your marker is noisy--sometimes squeaky, and sometimes just louder than usual as you move it across your paper--it may be starting to get dry.
• If the Super Brush tip is lighter in value than the rest of the Super Brush after you color for a couple of minutes, chances are, you need to re-ink that marker.

  

How much ink do I need to add to fill my Copic Sketch Marker?  Well, that depends upon how dry your marker is!

• The general rule of thumb is to add 1-1/2 to 2cc's of Various Ink to a dry marker.
• Check the number markings on the side of your 25cc. Various Ink bottle, making note of how many cc's of ink you have before inking, and check it again while you ink and after you ink to see how much ink you have added. The YG23 Various Ink bottle above is at 23cc. My YG23 Sketch marker is clearly dry. So I would expect to use about 2cc's of ink to fill the dry marker. (Honestly, I usually refill my markers long before they need 2cc's of ink--a juicy marker is a happy marker!)
• Perhaps this doesn't need to be said, but always CHECK and then DOUBLE-CHECK to be sure that you are using the same color of Various Ink as your marker color. I have picked up the wrong color by accident before. . . twice!

  

How do I get the ink into the marker? There are actually several options.

In my first post, I showed you what I think is simplest, and that is dripping ink onto the larger side of the chisel tip. I wanted to show you two other ways as well, because we all have different preferences.

• If you wish, you can pull out the chisel tip (with either your Copic Nib Tweezer, or even with clean fingers--non-oily and non-lotioned) IF you don't object to stained fingers. 
• Next you merely drip ink into the marker reservoir. If you give it a big squeeze, you will probably have a cascade of ink down your hand. You need to add ink s-l-o-w-l-y enough that it can soak into the reservoir.
• You should always take BOTH CAPS OFF to re-ink your marker. Otherwise you will create an airlock, and the ink will not want to soak into the reservoir.

• From the markings on the side of the Various Ink bottle, you can see that I used about 2cc's of ink to fill this very dry marker. 

How about that transformation? Easy-peasy, right?

Way 3: The Copic Booster Needle--yes, that is one BIG needle!

• For both Sketch and Ciao markers, you need to remove the chisel tip before inserting the needle into the marker reservoir. The Booster Needle, or Refill Booster, comes with a safety sheath; keep it and replace it on the needle after you use and clean the needle. Be wise: if you have a house full of small children, try using the drip methods instead!

How do I use the Refill Booster?

• Insert the Refill Booster into the marker reservoir and give it a gentle squeeze until you have added enough ink (again, generally 1-1/2 to 2cc. for a dry marker).
• Occasionally when I have a VERY dry Super Brush, I will have ink start to drip out of the bottom of my marker before I have added 1-1/2 to 2cc's. If a marker tip is very dry, you may have a bit of shrinkage. As the tip absorbs ink, it will swell again to fill the entire space. (I first noticed this when I put a new Super Brush into a marker and thought that it was too small; but within a minute or so, it was the perfect size, as ink flowed from the reservoir into the new Super Brush tip.) So if you have added only 1cc of ink to a very dry marker and experience dripage, give it a minute to absorb that ink and swell back up to full-size instead of letting ink drip straight through your marker.
• Pull the needle out when the marker reservoir is full, and replace the chisel nib.

• Before you put the Refill Booster Needle away, clean it with either rubbing alcohol or Colorless Blender, and then replace the protective cap.

That's it--refilling a marker is NOT difficult! And changing a nib? So easy. . . You've already seen how to remove a nib with the Copic Nib Tweezer. That's half the job done. Instead of putting the same nib back into the marker, slide a new one in. Yes, it's THAT easy!

Finally, just a few miscellaneous tips.

• While it is simple enough to remove a chisel tip even if you don't have a toothed Copic Nib Tweezer, you will find that removing a Super Brush without damaging it is a job best accomplished with the Nib Tweezer. If you tug on that Super Brush with your fingers or a non-toothed tweezer, you can very easily break the outer felt loose from the inner felt, resulting in either the outer felt coming completely off, or in the outer felt becoming very "bendy" and not bouncing back to its shape after being used. Of course, if you are replacing a damaged tip, I suppose it doesn't really matter if you pull it apart in the process--as long as you have a replacement handy!
• Rule of thumb: any time you need to add ink, add it to the chisel tip rather than the Super Brush.

When might you need to take the Super Brush out? 

• Sometimes you may want to insert a different tip, like the Medium Round #4, a stiffer nib than the Super Brush.

• Usually when I remove a Super Brush, it is because my brush tip is not working right. That can be because I have let it get into a substance that clogs the nib (such a chalks), or even merely because I have used a marker quite a bit and have had it uncapped for long enough that ink particles are dried on my nib, resulting in a sticky nib. (But the sticky nib is what I most often need to remove a nib for.)
• When you remove the Super Brush, grip the nib firmly with the Copic Nib Tweezer and pull straight out. You want to grip firmly enough to catch both the inner and out felt layers.

• A sticky nib can usually be remedied by cleaning the dried ink off of the nib. The safest way to accomplish that is to remove the Super Brush nib and to clean it in Copic Colorless Blender. I usually put a few drops of Colorless Blender into a sandwich bag, drop my sticky tip into that bag and squeeze (almost like finger-kneading) the offending tip. Then I pull it out of the bag and squeeze it in a paper towel to get the Colorless Blender out before reinserting it into my marker. Reinsertion requires a good, firm push to get it far enough in. Nine times out of ten, this little process will rescue a misbehaving nib for me. 
  
  
• I've said this once before, but a FULL marker is a happy marker! A juicy marker is less likely to sustain damage to a tip than a dry one. So do yourself a favor and keep those markers well-inked!
  
  
• Drippy Nibs: occasionally I have a marker that drips--usually when I'm almost finished with something, of course! A drippy marker is normally just an OVER-FILLED marker. First, try removing BOTH caps, and coloring with both caps off for a while. Since there is one reservoir feeding ink to both end of the marker, a slight overfill can usually be remedied this way. If a marker is very over-filled, you may actually have to scribble some excess ink out. (I usually use my chisel tip for that since it applies ink more quickly.)

• Rarely I have a marker than seems to dry out more quickly than all of the rest of my markers, in spite of being treated the same way. Usually that means that either I did not put the cap on well (listen for that snap!) -OR- I have reversed the caps. Edited to add: A third, but VERY RARE possibility is a cracked cap. I have seen only two of these in ten years.
• Theoretically all caps in a line (like Sketch markers) are the same size and are totally interchangeable, so that you can put an R24 cap on either end of the R24 marker, and it's absolutely fine that way. Once in a blue moon though, I run across a marker that seems to have a looser cap on one end. Most of the time, if I just switch caps (putting the cap I had on the Super Brush end on the Chisel end, and vice-versa), it helps my drying problem.

There--I think I've told you almost everything I know! I hope that you find these tips helpful and not overwhelming. Your Copic Markers are a quality tool that can last a lifetime, given proper care. Again, ask in the comments section if you have questions, and I will try to answer, or try to find an answer if I don't know it.

Thanks for stopping by,

Copic Marker Maintenance 1: Refilling and Cleaning

Welcome! We had a pretty quiet Christmas this year--just the three of us. Tomorrow we are taking a big meal somewhere, but today was free. . . and I needed to do some serious cleaning! After I finished cleaning my floors upstairs, I came downstairs to work on my markers. They need to be in tip-top shape before my first classes in February! I have Copic Certification classes in the Atlanta area on February 10-11, and then in Dallas on March 3-4.

So tonight I started checking through my personal class marker set for dry and dirty markers. As much as I've used them--especially the skin tones--I knew that I'd have some in need of help. I'm planning to create two posts on refilling markers, tonight using an inexpensive jeweler's scale, and on Wednesday night not using a scale for those of you who don't like extra things to keep up with in your work space.  

My personal preference for filling markers is the scale method. Why? It saves me time! I used to "fill" a few of my most heavily used class markers at almost every class. I would add 25 drops if the marker was just starting to feel a little dry, and maybe 50 drops if it seemed very dry. Unbelievably though, I would often still have someone say, "My marker seems dry" before the end of the second class day! When Lori Craig mentioned having a student in class who told her about filling markers by weight, I was intrigued. In fact, I ordered a scale the next day! (I purchased mine on Amazon and usually find them for around $7-10.)

When my scale arrived and I started weighing some of my neediest markers, usually my YG03's after a LOT of leaf coloring, I found that some of them weighed in the 7-2-7.7gram range (without caps on). WOW. No wonder I needed to add ink so often! They were very dry, and I wasn't adding nearly enough ink when I added my measly 25 drops. (My driest marker needed over 140 drops to be full again--yes, that OCD trait comes in handy on occasion. . .)

So that's my story of why I really prefer to use a scale when I'm refilling my markers. Is it necessary? NO, absolutely not. All you really need is a dry-ish marker, and a refill/Various Ink in the very same color! But I like tidy answers. . . I just can't help myself! ;-) Wednesday evening I'm planning to post a second refill post with no scale in sight. But tonight it's all about my favorite way.

With both caps off, a FULL Copic Sketch Marker usually weighs between 9.5 and 10 grams, in my experience. (This weight does not apply to Classic, Ciao, or Wide Copic markers--only to SKETCH.) I like to know both the caps-on and the caps-off weight. If I know the caps-on weight, I can weigh one marker after another without even uncapping them as long as they fall into my acceptable range. If my Copic Sketch marker with caps on weighs between 14 and 14.5 grams, I consider it full enough and slip it right back into my Copic Wallet. 

However, if it weighs under 14 grams with both caps on, I take the caps off and refill that marker. Obviously the marker above has both caps off. (I had already weighed it and determined that with both caps on, it was about 13 grams, definitely less than my preferred weight range.)

Why do I take both caps off to refill my marker? Copic Sketch, Ciao, and Classic markers are ALL double-ended; however, ONE reservoir in the marker feeds both ends of the marker. If you leave one cap on, you will create an air lock, and the ink will not absorb into the chisel end (Medium Broad tip) very quickly. Removing both caps allows the Various Ink (refill) to be pulled right into that reservoir. So just do it--take that extra two seconds to remove both caps, okay? 

While I am filling the marker, I usually check for dirty caps too. Dirty caps aren't just a cosmetic issue; especially on the Super Brush end, a really dirty cap can get sticky, making it hard to get on and off the marker. It can even keep the marker from sealing well if it's really dirty. Now, I confess that I don't always use my Copic Colorless Blender to clean the caps. I'm fine with using 91% rubbing alcohol to clean the caps. Let me be VERY clear: I would never, EVER put rubbing alcohol (isopropyl alcohol) into my Copic markers, which are ethanol-based. I won't even clean a sticky nib with rubbing alcohol. I always use my Colorless Blender if there is any chance of it contaminating my marker. 

So, when I use rubbing alcohol to clean the caps, I let them sit in the alcohol while I re-ink my marker, then pull both caps out of the alcohol and drain them on a paper towel. While they drain, I clean dried ink off the barrel and the gray plastic near the marker tips. When the body of my marker is clean, I use a cotton swab to completely dry out both tips before placing them back on my newly filled and cleaned marker. Call it Spa Day for my Copic Markers. They work really hard--they deserve it! 

Well, that's the scoop on refilling Copic Sketch Markers my favorite way--by weight. On Wednesday, I'm planning to share a second post that involves NO scale, and that also addresses a few other miscellaneous issues that you sometimes run into with your Copics (such as a sticky tip, or perhaps a drippy marker). I'll link Part 2 here when it is posted.  Please feel free to ask questions in the comments section, and I'll try to address them here or in the next post. 

One question that I know will come up is WHICH scale to purchase. I do not see the exact scale that I am using on Amazon right now, so I hate to try to recommend one without having tried it. I have not paid more than about $12 for one, I don't think, so look for good reviews and reasonable prices. Oh, and don't let ink drip into the area beneath the weighing tray, because it will also find its way into the LCD panel and totally tank the scale. Don't ask me how I know. . .

I hope that this helps! Thank you for stopping by,

Canvas Poinsettias

A Very Merry Christmas to you! I'm popping a Christmas-y post in here tonight because I'm not really planning to be near my computer at all tomorrow. I've been making a few little ornaments for our tree again this year, and I'm almost finished with these three; they need only a string to hang them by, so we'll pretend they are finished anyway! (As you can see, I finished and hung them.)

I had ordered a Sizzix Tattered Poinsettia die a couple of weeks ago because I wanted to play with my Terial Magic Fabric Stabilizer on canvas. (This was ornament project number 2 after DH didn't get the wooden ornaments cut out that I'd requested. Imagine that--he had real work to do--like cutting wood to keep our house warm!) I experimented with this project a bit so that I could tell you what works and what doesn't work as well.

The three canvas blanks that you see above have all been sprayed with a coat of Terial Magic and allowed to mostly air dry. I did give them a quick pass with my iron before die-cutting them just to make sure they were well-dried and wrinkle-free. Notice how cleanly the edges cut! I had tried die-cutting one piece before spraying it with Terial Magic, and it raveled and frayed, Maybe the frayed look would work since it's a vintage die anyway, but I liked a clean cut that went all of the way through and didn't require trimming of loose threads.

I used my Copic Markers and Copic Airbrush System to add a touch of color to my poinsettias. I didn't want them to be red because I needed relatively light pieces on my tree rather than dark pieces. (If you're wondering what I'm airbrushing on, it's Ellen Hutson's Essentials by Ellen Craft Assistant. I've had it for years, and it's fabulous for airbrushing. I use those really strong neodymium magnets to hold paper or cloth in place and just airbrush away, with nothing flying away. I throw a cover sheet on the 12 x 12 magnetic base; and when my cover sheet starts getting sticky, I just replace it with a fresh one.) Different Copic combos that I tried were R56/Y17/G85 above, R85/G24/G28/Y17 on another poinsettia (#2), and R43/Y17/G46 on another poinsettia (#1 at the bottom).

On this poinsettia, I tried gluing the layer together with Aleene's Super Fabric Adhesive, letting the adhesive dry, and THEN spraying with a second coat of Terial Magic and shaping the flower after it was dry. That way worked the best for me, but you might prefer a different look.  [I'll show you all three ways later.] So in the picture that you see above, I have glued the layers but have NOT re-sprayed or shaped the petals. I'm waiting for glue to dry. . . This poinsettia is number 3 in the numbered picture toward the bottom of the post.

Here is a different color combo [the R85/G24/G28/Y17 one], but the primary difference here was that I tried re-spraying the airbrushed parts and shaping them before I glued them together. [See BELOW.]

See how the petals are curled up quite a bit? This picture was taken about five minutes after I had sprayed the pieces with Terial Magic again. This poinsettia is number 2 in the picture below. 

As you can see, number 3 has probably the nicest shape; it was the one that I glued before spraying a second time with Terial Magic and shaping. Number 1 and number 2 were both  re-sprayed and shaped before I glued the pieces together, and some of the pieces seemed to have a mind of their own when it came to curl direction. I don't dislike them; I just liked the way that the petals lay a bit better on number 3--the one that I glued first and then re-sprayed and shaped.

Tomorrow morning these will be ready for some gold cord and perhaps a simple bow--then heading for the tree before it's time to take the tree down!

Here's a little bonus project: I used wool felt (PTI) along with Terial Magic on on this one. Unfortunately, this poinsettia die is a retired one (MFT)--bummer, unless you already own it! I didn't try to shape this one very much, but the Terial Magic gave the wool felt nice body so that the pieces are stiff and not floppy on my tree.

Christmas Blessings to you,

Love and Joy

Welcome! I'm still churning out a few Christmas cards now and then--we're down to the wire for sure! In fact, from the small batch I took in to the post office today, I was told that one envelope won't make it until the 26th. I still got more cards out on time this year than I have for the past couple of years, so I'm okay with that. 

I've found myself leaning on the MFT Stamps Hand-Lettered Christmas stamp set this year, mostly because it's quick and packs a nice visual punch, whether embossed or inked in multiple colors. I also used the Stars Above stamp set set and coordinating Die-namics quite a bit this year. I paired Hand-Lettered Christmas with the Moroccan Lattice Background for the card on the left. 

I'm working on a couple of projects that I'm still hoping to share in the next few days, but that depends upon time management. . . or lack thereof, obviously. ;-) May you have a lovely Christmas season!

New 2017 Copic Classes OPEN Now

{{{Drum-Roll Here}}}: While the Phoenix Copic Classes--both Certifications and Workshops--have been open for several weeks, other locations are now open, including Atlanta, Minneapolis, Portland, and Houston.

You can see ALL class locations and dates for 2017, for both Copic Certifications and Copic Workshops, HERE on the Imagination International, Inc. site.

I've mentioned the three new Copic Workshops briefly in previous posts, but I just wanted to clarify a bit about those. They are the three workshops featured above: Coloring Animals, Coloring Landscapes, and Hand Lettering. Click on each link for more information about that particular class.

Also continuing to be offered in select locations (Austin, Columbus OH, Kansas City, and Oklahoma City) are the Workshop Package 1 classes: Faces and Hair II, Vintage Values and Mono Tones, and Dress For Success: Clothing and Accessories.

The ever-popular Flowers Workshop continues to be offered in locations where Certifications are held, on the evening of the Standard Certification class day.

I will be in Phoenix for CHA on January 18-23. Do you plan to be there? Cindy Lawrence and Michelle Houghton are teaching the Phoenix classes this year, but Lori Craig and I will be nearby, no doubt!

My Spring 2017 class schedule looks like this:

• Atlanta on February 10-11
• Dallas/Irving on March 3-4
• Saskatoon, Saskatchewan on April 7-8 
• Pittsburgh on April 28-29
• Detroit on May 19-20, and
• Dallas/Irving (again) on June 9-10

I hope that you are having a very production December so far! Thanks for stopping by,

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Peace on Earth: MFT Release Replay

Welcome! It's Release Replay Day for My Favorite Things Stamps, and I have another Stars Above card to share. I knew that I needed to get some Christmas cards made, and the simplicity of the Stars Above set, combined with the sentiments from Hand-Lettered Christmas, was perfect for a set of quick cards. 

I embossed the little stars with detail white embossing powder and then watercolored them--super simple! I wanted them to be thin enough to mail easily; so on many of them, I used dies to emboss rather than adding so many layers. Using my MISTI to stamp the sentiment meant that I could re-ink the sentiment if it wasn't quite dark enough the first time I stamped it, and I needed that bit of extra grace on several cards. As you can see, I branch out and experiment while I'm supposed to be mass-producing, but it's more fun that way. ;-)

I hope you get a chance to visit the MFT Stamps Blog for a list of participants in today's Release Replay post--I know you'll be inspired! Thanks for stopping by today, 

LJD Stars Above	Die-namics LJD Stars Above	Hand-Lettered Christmas	Smooth White Card Stock
White Detail Embossing Powder	Versamark Ink Pad	Premium Dye Ink Pad Spearmint	Summer Splash Premium Dye Ink Pad
Mini Multi Medium Matte Glue	3 mm Sparkling Clear Sequins	MISTI

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Bookworm: MFT December Launch!

Welcome! It's release night at My Favorite Things Stamps; everything that you've seen on the MFT Blog is now available. I've used the Our Story set here again--couldn't put this one down! Remember when I said that I had to use the "To my favorite bookworm" sentiment twice, even at the expense of logic? (Favorite is superlative; so techinically you can have only ONE favorite.) Anyway, I have five-year old and eight-year old nieces who are crazy about reading. Sorry, but they both need favorite status in birthday cards! ;-)

Shown above are the Copic Sketch markers that I used to color the Our Story images and to and airbrush the background.

I thought I'd show you the plain colored chair, compared to the chair after it was texturized. The chair on the left has been colored smoothly. The chairs in the middle and on the right have texture added. After the marker ink was dry, I spritzed a scrap of denim with Copic Colorless Blender and laid it on top of the chair, pressing firmly for 5-10 seconds. Simple and fun upholstery! By the way, make sure you do any texturizing before coloring the rest of the image, or you'll have texturized skin too. ;-)

The airbrushed background needed a bit more planning: first I decided where my floor lamp would go and drew lightly penciled guidelines where I thought light should come from the top and bottom of the lampshade. Next I colored the yellow tones in the light, and then I masked off the yellow tones. I also die cut a scalloped rectangle and left the die in place to mask the edges of the rectangle. Finally I airbrushed a dark room with my purple tones, using more ink where the shadows would be deeper and less ink where the light would shine. It wasn't hard, but it did take a little time to figure out how I wanted it.

Again, all of the new December products are now available, and the links below should all work. Each of the MFT Design Team will have projects to share tonight, so please check out the MFT Stamps Blog for many more cool projects and products, as well as a chance to win fabulous prizes by commenting on the MFT DT New Product Release posts by the end of the day on Thursday, December 8. Good luck, and thanks for visiting,

BB Our Story	Die-namics BB Our Story	Die-namics Stitched Mini Scallop Rectangle STAX	Die-namics Stitched Basic Edges 2	Die-namics Blueprints 25
Versamark Ink Pad	White Detail Embossing Powder	Pure Plum Hybrid Ink Pad	Pure Plum Prestige Card Stock	Foam Mounting Tape 1/2"

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Joy from Me to You: MFT Countdown Release Day 1

Welcome! It's almost that time--release time, that is, for the December MFT Stamps release! Tonight, Tuesday at 9pm Eastern time, I'll have one more post to share. But right now I'd like to share a mostly die-cut card featuring the Winter Trees Die-namics. This would be a pretty simple card to mass-produce, but you might want to cut down a bit on the foam tape layers unless you can hand-deliver your cards. ;-) 

I've always loved the Vertical Snowfall and the Stitched Snow Drifts Die-namics, so I combined them with the Winter Trees and used some of my favorite soft colors to create my snow card. I topped the trees with small (4mm) sequins as stars and just tucked the trees in between the snow drifts. The "Joy from Me to You" sentiment is from the the Merry Everything stamp set, but you could easily substitute and sentiment of your choice, making the snow deeper if you had a taller sentiment. 

Keep in mind that while I linked all MFT products below, the links to the NEW release products will not work until release time, 9pm, EST on Tuesday, December 6. (All other links should work now.) 

I hope you have time to check out the MFT Stamps Blog for a complete list of participants in today's Countdown and to enter for prizes there! Thanks for stopping by today,

Die-namics Winter Trees	Merry Everything	Die-namics Snowfall - Vertical	Die-namics Blueprints 24	Die-namics Stitched Snow Drifts
Cool as a Cucumber Prestige Card Stock	Sno Cone Card Stock	Pink Lemonade Card Stock	Sweet Tooth Card Stock	Summer Splash Premium Dye Ink Pad
Quickie Glue Pen	Cool Diamond Microfine Glitter	Foam Mounting Tape 1/2"	Mini Multi Medium Matte Glue	4mm Clear Droplets

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Favorite Bookworm: MFT Countdown Release Day 3

Welcome! It's Day Three of the My Favorite Things Stamps December Countdown, and I have another super-cute set to show you today, Bookworm. I love that little worm with the scholarly glasses! Now, I have to confess that I borrowed a sentiment from the Our Story set that I showed you yesterday, mainly because I wanted to send this card and one that you haven't seen yet to two sweet little sisters. . . and it really wouldn't do for me to say that only ONE sister was my favorite, even if it isn't logical to have two "favorites." I'm sure that made sense to some of  you anyway! ;-)

Shown above are the Copic Sketch markers that I used to color the Bookworm images. (The sentiment is from MFT's Our Story stamp set.)

I paper-pieced the little reader's shirt to coordinate with the background patterned paper from last month's Merry and Bright collection, though I still shaded it a bit to give it some form. I airbrushed the background partial circle with YG21, a bright yellow green, to make the white elements stand out better against the background, 

Keep in mind that while I linked all MFT products below, the links to the NEW release products will not work until Release Night, 9pm, EST on Tuesday, December 6. (All other links should work now.) 

I hope you have time to check out the MFT Stamps Blog for a complete list of participants in today's Countdown and to enter for prizes there! Thanks for stopping by today,

Pure Innocence Bookworm	Die-namics PI Bookworm	Die-namics Inside & Out Stitched Circle STAX	Die-namics Blueprints 15	Die-namics Blueprints 27
Smooth White Card Stock	Sour Apple Card Stock	Hybrid Ink Pad Black Licorice	Elf Green Premium Dye Ink Pad	Plaid Patterns Merry & Bright Paper Pack
Foam Mounting Tape 1/2"

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My Favorite Stories: MFT Countdown Release Day 4

Welcome! It's Day Four of the My Favorite Things Stamps December Countdown, and I'm loving the Our Story stamp set that I've used here. In fact, I've already made another card with it too--it had too many possibilities to stop with one!

Shown above are the Copic Markers that I used on the Our Story images. I used one of the Oval Shadows Die-namics to ground him with an area rug. Any Broncos fans out there? That's what the colors reminded me of when I finished.

For the texture on the little reader's sweater, I used an old cotton sweater scrap spritzed with Copic Colorless Blender, laying that damp sweater scrap on top of dry Copic ink to push the ink and lighten certain areas to create a simple pattern. 

While I linked all MFT products below, the links to the NEW release products will not work until Release Night, Tuesday at 9pm, Eastern, on December 6. (All other links should work now.) Be sure to to visit the MFT Stamps blog to enter for today's prize, and to see a full list of links for the DT members showcasing today's release sets! Thanks for stopping by today,

BB Our Story	BG Wavy Coloring Book Background	Die-namics BB Our Story	Die-namics Oval Shadows	Die-namics Blueprints 15
Blueberry Premium Dye Ink Pad	After Midnight Premium Dye Ink Pad	Blending Card by X-Press It	Smooth White Card Stock	Blueberry Prestige Card Stock
Persimmon Prestige Card Stock	Foam Mounting Tape 1/2"

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Written in the Stars: MFT Countdown Release Day 5

Welcome to Day Five of the December My Favorite Things Stamps Countdown! Today I played with the Stars Above stamp set and Die-namics. I was feeling all watercolor-y, so I pull out my Distress Inks in Tumbled Glass, Salty Ocean, and Peacock Feathers, and hoped for the best. [Loose watercolor challenges me, to say the least.] I mixed the colors a little too much so that you really can't see three colors, but they're there--trust me! 

For the stars, I embossed in detail silver embossing powder and then painted random parts of the insides. On other parts I used a glue pen and added glitter. I mean, stars NEED glitter, right? (Well, glitter, or Chibi Lights. . .) 

As always during release week, the new items shown will be available on release evening, Tuesday at 9pm, Eastern, on December 6. (That is a new, earlier time.) Links for new supplies at the bottom of the page will work then; all other links should work now. Thank you for stopping by tonight, and I hope you get a chance to visit the MFT Stamps Blog for a complete list of participants in today's release blog hop, as well as for information on how to enter the prize drawing on the MFT Stamps Blog.

LJD Stars Above	Die-namics LJD Stars Above	Die-namics Blueprints 27	Versamark Ink Pad	Silver Detail Embossing Powder
White Detail Embossing Powder	Watercolor Paper Pad	Sweet Tooth Card Stock	Tropical Teal Prestige Card Stock	Tim Holtz Distress Mini Kit #1
Tim Holtz Distress Mini Kit #6	Tim Holtz Distress Mini Kit #8	4mm Clear Droplets

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