Thinking Inking

Totally Grateful: MFT WSC448

Welcome! Today I'm playing along with a My Favorite Things Stamps Sketch Challenge, WSC448, and tomorrow is the beginning of the MFT August Release. On today's card, I used the Captivating Mandala Stencil and a VERY tiny bit of Caribbean Brights Color Burst powder--truly, it doesn't take much! If you haven't experimented with Color Burst yet, I would recommend using far less powder than you think you need, and less water than you think you need too if you are stenciling. If you use too much water, it will creep under the stencil and you will not get a clean look. (Don't ask me how I know.) Less is definitely more!

Would you like to play along with the Sketch Challenge? Check the MFT Stamps Blog for more details and more sketch inspiration as well! Thanks for stopping by,

Sending Happiness Your Way: MFT Color Challenge #122

Welcome! Today I'm playing along with the My Favorite Things Stamps Color Challenge #122. I wracked my brain for a bit on this one, and then I thought of Fall leaves after the first heavy frost--that's how I'm justifying the Wild Wisteria color anyway! ;-) For the leaves, I did some ink blending with the following Distress Oxide inks: Ripe Persimmon, Fired Brick, and Shaded Lilac. (Those were the closest Distress Oxide colors that I had to my MFT colors, and it allowed me to splash a bit of texture on my leaves.) I also used two of the stippling patterns from the Distressed Patterns stamp set to add some darker spatters with my MFT Dye inks.

Would you like to join us for this challenge? Check out the MFT Stamps Blog for more inspiration and for the details! Thanks for stopping by,

Birthday FISHES: MFT WSC447

Welcome! Today I'm playing along with a My Favorite Things Stamps Sketch Challenge, WSC447. I pulled out some older stamps and dies--Gill Friends--because the two wavy lines at the bottom of the sketch reminded me of the ocean floor. 


Shown above are the Copic Sketch Markers that I used to color the Gill Friends images. I used blending brushes and Distress Oxide Inks, also listed above, for the water background.

Would you like to play along with the Sketch Challenge? Check the MFT Stamps Blog for more details and more sketch inspiration as well! Thanks for stopping by,

A Hello Note: MFT WSC446

Welcome! Today I'm playing along with a My Favorite Things Stamps Wednesday Sketch Challenge, WSC446. This sketch looks simple, but for some reason I was stumped. . . (Yes, I do tend to complicate everything!) Finally I decided to use one of my word sets, Well, Hello, stamping it repeatedly to create a background, and then using one of its smaller sentiment strips toward the bottom.

Do you have a great idea for this week's Sketch Challenge? Check the MFT Stamps Blog for more details and more sketch inspiration as well! Thanks for stopping by,

Super Cute Laundry: MFT WSC445

Welcome! Today I'm playing along with a My Favorite Things Stamps Wednesday Sketch Challenge, WSC445. I needed a baby card this past weekend for a sweet young couple expecting their first baby. The funny thing is that after ordering from their Amazon Baby Registry, I assumed that they were expecting a boy; I mean, most of the gift possibilities that had any color were in blues/greens/tans. Obviously a boy--no need to ask, right? Nope. . . They don't actually know, so I guess I still have a statistically slightly better than 50% chance of being right. :-} 

I have always loved the Welcome, Baby stamp set and Bundle of Baby Clothes Die-namics. And it's hard to go wrong with the All Lined Up background stamp too! I used that super shiny silver cardstock for my little clothes hangers, and followed the sketch almost exactly this time. . . for a change. . . Easy peasy!

Would you like to play along with the Sketch Challenge? Check the MFT Stamps Blog for more details and more sketch inspiration as well! Thanks for stopping by,

Hope Your Birthday is a Splash: MFT and Friends July 2019

Welcome! It's July Release Day for My Favorite Things Stamps, and I have one more new release card to share today, using the Sunshine & Friendship stamp set and coordinating Die-namics set. (By the way, this set coordinates beautifully with the Drink Up the Sunshine stamp set that I used HERE, as well as the pool shaker!)

Shown above are the Copic Sketch markers that I used to color the Sunshine & Friendship images. I used Distress Oxide inks for the pool area, including Salty Ocean, Peacock Feathers, and Cracked Pistachio.

All of the new July products are now available, and the links below should all work. Each of the MFT Design Team members AND some amazing guests will have projects to share today, so please check out the MFT Stamps Blog for many more cool projects and products, as well as a chance to win fabulous prizes. Good luck on the giveaway, and thank you for visiting,

Hey, Chica: June Club LLLC Release Review

Welcome! For my first post this morning I'm sharing two more cards made with the June 2019 Club La-La Land Kit stamps and dies. I hope you picked up this kit when it was available in June! If you did, then this is just a little more inspiration as you play with your kit. If not, I hope you enjoy seeing the Fiesta Marci and Ay, Chihuahua cards anyway. :-)

First up is Fiesta Marci in a traditional outfit, along with one of her faithful chihuahua sidekick. I found some pretty Cinco de Mayo Digital Papers at CreativeMarket.com that I thought would work perfectly with Fiesta Marci; I used these paper on both cards in this post. Both her rose and the red layer of her skirt are popped up with foam tape for some added dimension.

Shown above are the Copic Sketch markers that I used to color Fiesta Marci and the Chihuahua.

For my second card, I used a different chihuahua from the Ay, Chihuahua set, along with several of the June dies--that guac bowl was fun to color!

The Copic Sketch markers that I used are all listed here, for your reference.

Again, check THIS PAGE for more about the Club La-La Land Crafts Monthly Kits. 

Thanks for visiting!

For Keeping Me Afloat: MFT Release Countdown Day 1

Welcome to Day 1 of the My Favorite Things Stamps July Release Countdown--tomorrow is the big day! Today I'm sharing a card using the darling Mermaid for Each Other stamp set and Die-namics. And before anyone asks about a mirror finish on swim goggles, I might have taken creative liberties there! Let's just assume that if you can have a mermaid tail, you can probably have mirrored swim goggles too. . .

Shown above are the Copic Sketch markers that I used to color the Mermaid for Each Other images. The background is done in Distress Oxide Inks, also noted above. Please note: You can click on this image for a larger-sized image if that would be helpful.

I used a strip of 2" wide Post-It Tape to die cut the waves from last month's Pop-Up Wiper Card Components Die-namics, because I like to have both the positive and negative shape of the wave to mask both the top of the waves and the bottom of the sky. I also used two MFT stencils, Mini Cloud Edges and Drifts & Hills.

While I have linked the MFT products that I used below, the links to the NEW product links will not be live links until release day, 10am Eastern Time, Tuesday, July 9. All of the other links should work now. Be sure to check the MFT Stamps blog for more July Release inspiration AND for a chance to win some great prizes!  Thank you for visiting,

Fill My Day with Rainbows: MFT Release Countdown Day 2

Welcome to Day 2 of the My Favorite Things Stamps July Release Countdown! At 10am Eastern time on Tuesday, July 9, the July release will be live, and all of the new products shown in the past few days will be available. Today I chose the rainbow image from Fairy-Tale Friends, pairing it with a sentiment from Rainbow Greetings.  

Shown above are the Copic Sketch markers that I used to color the rainbow from the Fairy-Tale Friends stamp set. I ran them through my Xyron after coloring them, and then coated them with ultra-fine glitter. I used black ink on the primary colors rainbow, and gray ink with the lighter colored rainbow card. I used Lemon Drop ink and the Radiating Rays stencil, along with a soft stenciling brush, to put a hint of sun behind the rainbows. 

In addition to the ones that I've shared here, there are more fabulous new products being showcased today; I hope you get a chance to visit the MFT Stamps Blog for a complete list of designers playing along with today's new products AND to enter for prizes! Remember that while all MFT products that I used are linked below, the NEW product links won't be live until release time--that's Tuesday morning (July 9) at 10am Eastern time. All other links should work now. Thank you for stopping by today!

Celebrating your Special Day: MFT Release Countdown Day 3

Welcome to Countdown Day 3 of the My Favorite Things Stamps July Release countdown! Today I chose the Stacy Yacula Sending Sweet Celebration Wishes stamp set and coordinating Die-namics--I love those happy little animals!

Shown above are the Copic markers that I used to color the Sending Sweet Celebration Wishes images. For the background, I used blending brushes along with MFT's stencils (Mini Cloud Edges and Grass Edges) and MFT die ink (Gumdrop Green and Berrylicious).

I hope you get a chance to visit the MFT Stamps Blog for a complete list of designers using today's new products AND to enter for prizes! Remember that while the MFT products that I used are linked below, the NEW product links won't be live until Release time--that's Tuesday, July 9, at 10am Eastern time. All other links should work now. Thank you for stopping by today,

Hi: MFT Release Countdown Day 4

Welcome to Day 4 of the My Favorite Things Stamps July Release Countdown! Today's cards feature a couple of letters from the Impact Alphabet--saying that makes me feel like I'm announcing for Sesame Street! I have a couple of cards for you, because one thing led to another. . .

This was actually my second card after I decided that I wanted to use a colorable image and spotlight only my letters with color. The smaller sentiment that I split on either side is from the Well, Hello stamp set, and the background is the Poppies Background.

For this one, I was thinking of the framed pieces that contain the entire alphabet but highlight only two or three letters. I also wanted to try the new Over the Rainbow paper pack, hence the combination. :-)

While I have linked the MFT products that I used below, the links to the NEW products will not be live links until release day, 10am Eastern Time, Tuesday, July 9. All of the other links should work now. Be sure to check the MFT Stamps blog for more July Release inspiration AND for a chance to win some great prizes! Thank you for visiting,

Sunshiny Birthday: MFT Release Countdown Day 5

Welcome to Day 5 of the My Favorite Things Stamps July Release Countdown! Today I'm sharing a pool shaker card using the Drink Up the Sunshine stamp set, along with a beach ball from the Sunshine & Friendship stamp set.

Shown above are the Copic Sketch markers that I used to color the Drink Up the Sunshine images. Again, the beach ball is from the Sunshine & Friendship stamp set that coordinates beautifully with Drink Up the Sunshine.  (The pool water layer in the shaker is watercolored.)

While I have linked the MFT products that I used below, the links to the NEW products will not be live links until release day, 10am Eastern Time, Tuesday, July 9. All of the other links should work now. Be sure to check the MFT Stamps blog for more July Release inspiration AND for a chance to win some great prizes! Thank you for visiting,