Sunday, December 21, 2014

Season's Tweetings! :)

Hello!

With Christmas quickly approaching, I'm popping in to share a card that was quite fun to make. It's a different style for me but that was part of the fun. Here's my card:

Where to begin? The background panel was made with a faux letterpress technique. I had tried this technique years ago and the idea popped into my head to try it again. So, I used my Sizzix folder and inked up one side of the embossing folder with Salty Ocean distress ink. I then squeezed the cardstock into the embossing folder and ran it thru the embossing machine. This is the look you get! It's not a perfect letterpress--which is what kind of annoys me--but it works on cutesy, artsy type cards. The center panel has the dies and stamps from Lawn Fawn's Winter Sparrows set. I've been using my inktense watercolor pencils a lot lately and that's what I used to color in their accessories. I added some stickles to the branches for the "snow" and also some Wink of Stella to the top of the yellow hat. Super easy card to make and these birds are just so cute! :)

Here's where I'm entering the card, too.
1. Simon Says Monday Challenge--an "anything goes" week.
2. Simon Says Wednesday Challenge--Winter
3. Cute Card Thursday--Sparkle
4. Word Art Wednesday--always "anything goes".

May you all have a wonderful Christmas and a new year filled with many, many blessings from Above.
Pat

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Glory to God in the highest....

Hi friends,

I hope everyone is having a good week so far. I'm popping in quickly to share I care I made over the weekend. Here's the card:

I love the simplicity--and truth--of this card! The angel is from Inkadinkadoo and the sentiment is from a wood mount stamp that I received as a gift many years ago. I believe it's from Stampin' Up. I stamped the angel in gold and then heat embossed it. I layered the image on black cardstock and the card was done...I contemplated adding gems or sequins...but chose, instead, to just it let be. This is one of those great cards to mass produce! Super quick and easy...yet lovely.

I'm entering this card in a few different challenges.
1. Party Time Tuesdays--"Anything Goes" challenge.
2. Inkspirational--use gold on a project.
3. V's Sweet Ideas--Holiday Card theme.



Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day!
Pat

Sunday, December 7, 2014

Beary Christmas! :)

Hello friends!

I'm popping in again to share a card I made with one of my favorite images! I believe this is a stampin' up image that's retired and I got it from a friend. Love the teddy bears! :) Here's my card and the challenges will be below, too.
Aren't these little bears cute?! I began by die cutting the two panels with the Lawn Fawn large, stitched rectangle dies. Then, I stamped the image with versafine ink. I then used my distress ink (broken china) to stamp the snowflakes (from the dollar bin at a local craft store) on the main image. After that was stamped, I inked the background and masking the main image so that the ink wouldn't get on the bears. The bears were colored in with inktense watercolor pencils. I added some slight shading once the colors had dried. Always easier to add color once that initial layer has dried. I did add some Wink of Stella to the hat of the bear wearing a green sweater so there's a shimmer on the card, too. I stamped the sentiment (Hero Arts)  and added the faux stitching using the distress ink/marker also.

The sketch I used also wanted an element on the outer panel. I chose to extend the snowflakes in white from the side and LOVE how that looks! Such a great sketch...may use it again for a birthday theme, too! :)

Here are the challenges and sketch:
1. Virginia's View Challenge--use distress ink
2. Simon Says Stamp! Wednesday Challenge--make a Christmas/Holiday card
3. CAS(E) this Sketch!--see sketch below. Great sketch, by the way!


Thanks for stopping by!
Pat

Saturday, December 6, 2014

Celebrating the Greatest Gift

Hi friends!

I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend. I had a bit of time to play in my room tonight and wanted to share a card. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in our house--and I love that--but it always makes me wonder if I'm forgetting what Christmas is really all about. Sure, presents are fun...but this season is about remembering the greatest gift of all--the gift of Jesus! So, here's the card I created to celebrate this season.
This image is from Penny Black and I LOVE it! Mary holding baby Jesus and Joseph alongside them is just such an angelic image. I stamped the image on watercolor paper and then used my inktense watercolor pencils to color in the image. Some of the colors weren't quite as deep as I wanted them so I did use some distress markers, too. I love that you can use both these mediums so easily. I then used rubber cement to cover the image completely so that I could then color in the background and not worry about messing up the image. This works great as a mask! You just wait for the rubber cement to dry and then rub it off...super easy! As a final step, I spritzed the whole image with pearlized water so there's a soft shimmer to the image, too. I didn't want to detract from the image with a sentiment so I stamped it on the inside. It reads, "Celebrating the Greatest Gift of All" from Hero Arts.

I'll be entering the card in the following challenges:
1. Simon Says Stamp! Monday Challenge--create a holiday card.
2. Cute Card Thursday--the theme was "Little Angels"...again, it's open to interpretation but I'm sure there were tons of angels watching this scene and Mary looking at baby Jesus is so angelic, too.
3. Word Art Wednesday--an Anything Goes challenge. :)

Thank you so much for stopping by. And remember...Jesus is the Greatest Gift!
Pat

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Hey Diddle, Diddle...

Good afternoon, friends!

I'm stopping in to share a card I made for a dear friend last night. She's enjoying a new baby and I wanted to send her a card. I'll also be entering the card into a couple of different challenges and you'll find the links and inspiration below my card.  Here's my card:

I LOVED this sentiment! I think it's so perfect for a baby card. The card was inspired by the image at the Runway Inspired Challenge (see below). I wanted to keep the card fairly clean and simple. It's not often that a baby card is graphic, too, so I was intrigued by the photo to try to make a baby card with it. 

This is a great way to use scraps! I cut out several colors and then adhered them on a white strip of cardstock. Then I trimmed down all the strips and realized that the strips weren't long enough for the entire card. So, I the strip--no one will ever know, right? The sentiment is from Inkadinkadoo and I used an apothecary label from Simon Says Stamp! as the die. The cut strip is right behind the sentiment. :) I fought hard against adding any more elements. Clean and simple is difficult for me but I walked away. 

Here's where I'll be entering the card:
1. Party Time Tuesdays--They have an "anything goes" challenge. Always fun!
2. Runway Inspired Challenge--I LOVE this site! Looking at a fashion statement and then trying to make it into a card...not as easy as it would appear! Here's the latest inspiration:

Thanks for stopping by!
Pat

Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Snowman Greetings

Hi everyone!

I'm quickly popping in to share a card. I'm busy getting ready for a holiday bazaar and trying to get a lot of cards done. I'll be entering the card in a few challenges, too, and you can see the sites listed below my card. Here's my card:

Isn't this a cute snowman?! I just love his little face! He's a cling stamp from Hero Arts and I love how happy he looks. I stamped him in Memento black ink but removed the ink from the snowflakes before stamping. Then, I used my broken china distress marker to color in the snowflakes and then stamped the image. I colored him in using my inktense watercolor pencils. Super easy and very bright colors. The sentiment is also from Hero Arts but I cut it so that it would be a long sentiment and not one word on top of the other. For the snow I added some stickles and it looks so cute in real life. Both the panel and the background paper were cut using Lawn Fawn's large stitched rectangle dies. These dies cut beautifully and leave such a nice detail on the edging of the paper.

Here are the sites where I'll be entering the card:
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge--they wanted Holiday/Christmas cards.
Word Art Wednesday--"Anything Goes" challenge
CAS(E) this Sketch--see below. A sketch is the "starting point" for me. Sometimes I use it "as is". Other times, I try to envision something new with it. In this case, I thought the snowflakes circling around the snowman were the circle element with the sentiment still underneath.

Thanks so much for stopping by!
Pat


Monday, December 1, 2014

Hanging Ornaments

Hi friends!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We just got back from visiting my brother and his wife and I'm sure I've gained 20 pounds since last week! :)

I wanted to share I card I made with a new stamp set I won from a Hero Arts prize package. I'll be entering the card into several challenges and I'll have those linked right after my card and description. Here's my card:
 I love this card! I loved getting the inks out (Colorbox) and heat embossing each ornament. I love the simplicity of the card, too. I used a t-ruler to add the lines to the ornaments and then a few pearls to the snowflakes. The sentiment is also from Hero Arts. I think I remember Jennifer McGuire making a similar card and she used an ombre technique to vary the shades in each ornament. I needed to make several cards quickly so I just stamped and embossed. Super easy card to replicate and you can change up the colors if you get bored (which I do when I make more than one card at a time).

Each challenge site was either a Holiday card or a picture challenge. The two challenge pictures included ornaments so I used that as the inspiration for the card.


Here's the different sites and challenge badges:
Simon Says Stamp! Monday Challenge--Holiday Cards
Curtain Call--see image below "Clearly Christmas"
Festive Friday--see image below
V's Sweet Ideas--Holiday cards
Word Art Wednesday--Anything Goes!

There's still time to play along with most of the challenges here... :)

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week!
Pat



Monday, November 24, 2014

Heartfelt Thanks among the trees....

Hi everyone!

With Thanksgiving around the corner, I'm popping in to just quickly share a card I created yesterday. I'll be entering this card into several different sites:
1. Simon Says Wednesday blog--the challenge was to make a "thanks" card.
2. Moxie Fab World--our card had to have tons of trees on it. The "tree-mendous challenge".
3. Word Art Wednesday--"anything goes".

Here's my card:
So, this stamp is a new one for me. I went shopping at a local craft store and a friend of mine ended up winning a prize package. Since all the prizes were paper craft related, she deferred her selection to me! And, there was a nice package of Hero Arts stamps and goodies!

I stamped this image (Winter trees) in brown pigment ink and heat embossed it. Then, I masked off the ground portion so that the "horizon" would be easy to color in. I used my distress inks to make this sunset. I started off with some squeezed lemon. Then I used spiced marmalade and then dusty concord. For the ground, I used Wink of Stella to add some shine but the picture didn't pick that up. I also wanted to try to add some snow on the trees. I used the white picket distress marker and added touches of white to a few trees but it's hard to see here. I layered the image on cardstock that I distressed to match the sunset and then added some twine. Anyway, it was a fun image to play with! The sentiment is also from Hero Arts.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Remember your blessings as you sit with your friends and loved ones. I'm grateful to have a place to share my cards and I'm thankful for the kind messages left, too.

Pat

Sunday, November 16, 2014

Christmas ornaments

Hi everyone!

I'm here to share a card that I had a lot of fun making! With Christmas under 40 days away (yikes!), I spent some time figuring out what card I'd like to make and send out to friends. I think this may be it. I'll be entering the card in a few different challenges listed below:
Word Art Wednesday--they always have an "anything goes" challenge so I try to play along often.
Cute Card Thursday--the challenge was to use "red and green".
Just Add Ink--the challenge was to add texture.

Here's my card:
I wish the picture would've been better. What you don't see is that the front panel is embossed with tons of Christmas words like "joy" and "peace" (Sizzix). I then used Sizzix dies to cut the ornaments and then cut them out again on a shiny, red cardstock. I took some stamps (flourishes, and a snowflake) and added the designs to the snowflakes. I like that each ornament is unique in its design. I heat embossed them in silver and then added some green gems as accents. The sentiment is from Hero Arts. I debated for a long time whether or not to "hang" the ornaments with string but chose instead to just put some white bows on each ornament.

The card was easy to make and tons of fun because you got to be creative with the actual ornament die cut. And I love the texture from the embossing folder that covers the entire card and the silver embossing that really adds a nice punch of color to the card, too.


Thanks for stopping by and have a great week!
Pat

Sunday, November 9, 2014

Deck the Halls!

Hi friends!

I know, I've been MIA for a while! But, there's some great challenges that I got to play along with tonight and I'm here to share a Christmas card. Hard to believe Christmas is a little over a month away!

I'm submitting my card to the following challenges:
Freshly Made Sketches--they provided such a fun sketch and I immediately knew what I'd make.
The Paper Players--they provided the color inspiration.
Simon Says Stamp! Monday challenge--having "ornaments" on the card.
Word Art Wednesday--"anything goes" challenge...my FAVORITE!

Without further ado, here's my card and the challenge badges will be underneath the card.


 I was delighted to find this stamp on clearance several months ago. I believe it's from Hero Arts and I loved using it as a background. (I might make my own stamp pad next time so I can have several colors on the background and not just one). I stamped and clear embossed it. Then, I used a Sizzix die for the ornament and stamped and embossed several snowflakes on the ornament. I layered the pieces on some red metallic/shimmery cardstock from Die Cuts with a View. The final touch was to add some red gems to the snowflakes and the string of lights. Super easy to do--and could be mass produced, too--but still looks elegant because of all the shimmer and embossing.

Have a great week, everyone! Thanks for stopping by!
Pat


Thursday, October 9, 2014

Watercolor/Color Combo card

Hi everyone!

I hope everyone had a great week. I'm popping in to share a card. You know when you go to a local craft store and they have a huge sale going on? Let's just say I picked up the image on this card for a STEAL! I'll be entering the card in several challenges. First up is the Simon Says Wednesday Challenge site that challenged us to use watercolors. Second, is the Just Add Ink site. I loved the colors they chose. And last, but not least, is Word Art Wednesday that always allows us to just create freely with an "anything goes" challenge. Here's my card and the color swatch also:

I just LOVE this image! It's from Great Impressions Stickables and it's just so sweet! I really wanted to do some soft pinks and purples with the soft blue sky in the background. I used my distress markers to color in the image and also some of my Inktense watercolor pencils. Although the background paper has some additional colors from that of the color challenge, I didn't feel they were too blatant to distract from the main image that did have the main colors. The sentiment is from Hero Arts.

Sure to brighten up someone's day! :)



Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!
Pat

Saturday, October 4, 2014

The Sky's the limit on WCMD

Hi all!

Since I'm on the West Coast, it's still World Cardmaking Day for me. Tonight I got a chance to work on a quick card. I'm entering it in a few different challenges. The first is retro sketches. They provided a sketch and, as soon as I saw it, I knew exactly what I'd use. The second is the Simon Says Wednesday Challenge where they wanted us to use a transportation theme. Last but not least is the Word Art Wednesday site that always features an "anything goes" challenge. Here's my card and the sketch:
Isn't this a cute sketch?! I LOVED it! I thought the parachute kind of mimicked the question mark and sentiment at the bottom was like the period. I have been on a watercolor kick lately. This image (Hampton Arts) was colored in with inktense watercolor pencils and I added some slight shading with Distress Markers. I fussy cut the image and stamped the sentiment. VERY quick card to make....but so cute! You could even add some clouds in the background but I wanted to try to stick close to the sketch, albeit with my twist on it.

Hope you all enjoyed WCMD! Thanks for stopping by!
Pat






Thursday, October 2, 2014

Not the Years but the Mileage!

Hi friends!

I'm stopping in to share a card. I got a new stamp set and I LOVE it! I'll be entering the card in the Simon Says Wednesday challenge and the Word Art Wednesday challenge site, too. Simon challenged us to have some form of transportation on our card and the Word Art site has an "anything goes" challenge every week. Here's my card:
This is a Hampton Arts stamp set that I bought at Michaels the other day. The images are so cute and the sentiments are hilarious! On the inside of the card, the sentiment reads, "It's not the years that count. It's the mileage!" :)

I stamped the image and heat embossed it on watercolor paper. Then I used my inktense watercolor pencils to color in the image. Once it was dry, I added some additional shading to certain areas with my distress markers--these two mediums play very well together! I then fussy cut the image and worked on the front of the card. I stamped the cloud by using a rocking technique. I covered the stamp with the lighter blue shade and then rocked the darker blue shade gently all around the edges--love the dimension it gives the clouds! The big banner was part of the set and I stamped and fussy cut that, too. I used dimensional tape on both the image and banner. Finally, I added some star dust stickles to the propeller and the white trim right under the pilot's arm. If you enjoy coloring, this is a fun image.

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderful weekend!
Pat

Sunday, September 28, 2014

You Mean the World to Me card

Happy Sunday!

I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend. I'm here to share another card with my latest Lawn Fawn stamp set--Wish You were Here. I'll be entering the card into three separate challenges. First up are two different challenges by Simon Says Stamp--the Monday challenge was to use stamps/stencils and the Wednesday challenge was "anything goes". The third site is Word Art Wednesday and they always have an "anything goes" challenge. Here's my card:

I LOVE this set from Lawn Fawn! The images and sentiments go perfectly together. I started out by stamping the image on watercolor paper and heat embossing it. This just helps keep the watercoloring in the lines a bit. Then I used my distress markers to color in the image. I used 2 shades of green (peeled paint and pine needles) and brown (vintage photo) for the land mass and 1 shade of blue (salty ocean) for the oceans. I then fussy cut the image and sprayed it with water that had perfect pearls in it. That added some shimmer to the card. I stamped the sentiment and the adhered the image with dimensional tape and the card was done.

I actually made three different cards with this same image. The only difference was how I colored the image. One had more green. Another had several shades of blue for the water. Each card looks slightly different but the same overall look. The distress markers worked great. I loved seeing how easily they blended. Each of my cards was unique and all I did was add more of the same colors to the image to achieve a different look. So much fun!

Thanks so much for stopping by!
Pat

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Wish You were Here

Hi all!

I have a new card to share today. I'll be entering it in both the Simon Says Monday (use a stamp or stencil on a project) and Wednesday challenges (anything goes), as well as, in the Word Art Wednesday site (also an anything goes challenge). Here's my card:

One of my local craft stores that carries Lawn Fawn products was having a big sale this past week. I jumped at the chance to get the Wish You Were Here set. I LOVE this set! I stamped the USA image in black and heat embossed it on watercolor paper. Then, using my inktense watercolor pencils I added color to each state. This is much easier when it's heat embossed because the embossing helps you stay within the lines. Once the coloring was done, I fussy cut the image, stamped the "x" on the state of Washington and then adhered it with dimensional tape. Then I added the sentiment and the card was done.

This was a super fun card to make! Although the coloring took some time, it's so relaxing. And once the coloring is done, the rest of the card is really quick.


Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!
Pat

Saturday, September 20, 2014

A card inspired by Manolo Blahnik?

Yes, indeed! Although Manolo Blahnik is known for creating shoes that women swoon over, he's now crossed over to inspire the cardmaking world! :) Using the picture of the shoes as inspiration, I had a lot of fun creating this card! I'll also be entering it in the Runway Inspired Challenge since they're the ones that had the idea of using the shoes. And I'll be entering it in the Word Art Wednesday site with their "anything goes" challenge. Below you'll find the card and the photo inspiration.


I wanted to use the color inspiration for this card. Also, the heels are so high that I wanted to make the card have an upward design. The stamp is from Hero Arts (Lattice) and I used my distress markers (dusty concord, ripe persimmon, antique linen) to color in the stamp using water on watercolor paper. I then matted the image by scribbling ripe persimmon distress ink on white cardstock. I also spritzed some water mixed with perfect pearls so that you can see a shimmer on the card. The sentiment was heat embossed and it's from Hampton Arts. Since every girl likes some bling, I added just a few purple gems and the card was done!

Using pictures for inspiration is one of my favorite ways to be challenged. LOVED this challenge! And there's still tons of time to play along.

Have a great week and thanks so much for stopping by!
Pat

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Christmas in September!

Hi all!

Yes, I've been absent for a very, very, very long time...and I've missed it! But, the summer was a one-of-a-kind summer! Our family drove all the way to Wisconsin (from Washington State!) and did tons of camping and sightseeing. We were home for about 2 weeks and then took off AGAIN--this time, to the beautiful state of Alaska via a cruise! We just got back a few days ago and we loved every single minute! So, now you know why I've been MIA.

I wanted to share a card I made using frantage. It's a product that's been out for a very long time but I just started using the stash I had a few months ago. The one I had was a mixture of pinks and gold. But I really wanted the teal frantage...and I think I love it even more than the pink! I'll be entering this card in the weekly Word Art Wednesday challenge. It's always an "anything goes" challenge and I try to play along when I can. The other challenge blog I'll be entering this card in is the A Blog Named Hero site that has us showing off our pattern paper.

Here's my card:
This Christmas set is from Hero Arts. I love it! The Christmas tree is nice and full of branches and that's one of the reasons the frantage works so well on this tree. It's a mixture of glitter and mica and thick embossing powder which gives the tree an amazing texture! The sentiment was gold heat embossed and then the gems were added to finish off the card. I knew I wanted pattern paper that would complement the tree's color so I used paper from the DCWV Luxury Stack. However, I didn't want to cover up the paper too much and I also didn't want the pattern paper to overwhelm the card so vellum was a great way to go for this card. I love it!

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a great rest of the week!
Pat

Saturday, August 2, 2014

Copic fun!

Hi everyone!

I'm popping in really quickly to share a card that I made using Copic markers. I made a bunch and have been putting different sentiments on them and this one just happened to have a Mother's Day sentiment. I'm by NO means an expert with the markers but I have been playing around with them and trying to learn. It's quite therapeutic to sit and color awhile. I'm entering the card at the Simon Says Stamp! anything goes challenge and the Inkspirational website that challenged us to use markers or pencils. Here's my card:
The stamps I used were a gift. I believe they are stamps from a company that is no longer in business (Autumn Leaves) but I still use their images. These are a lot of fun to color in. I wanted a really bright and cheery card that had tons of colors. I used the colors I had on hand to just have fun and add some slight shading to the card. I cut a panel out of the colored portion and then lined the panel with strips of black cardstock to help define the area a bit more. The faux stitching also helped add a nice touch to the card. The sentiment is from the dollar bin--LOVE when you can actually use those.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great month--I probably won't get a chance to blog while on a road trip for 3 weeks!
Pat

Thursday, July 24, 2014

Jesus is the Reason

Hi again,

I know it's July but I just completed an order for Christmas cards! I thought I'd share one of my favorite cards. I'm also entering it in the latest Simon Says challenge which asked us to emboss something. Here's my card:
I started out with some red pattern paper from a Christmas stack from DCWV. I also used little strips of silver glitter paper--LOVE this paper from DCWV--and strips of black paper that helped separate the main image/sentiment from the pattern paper. I added some faux stitching to the black strips which helped make it stand out more. The image is from Hero Arts, as is the sentiment, and I silver embossed both. Super quick card but I love how it turned out!

Thanks for stopping by!
Pat

A Precious Gift

Hi everyone!

I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying their summer. We are gearing up for a 3 week camping trip that will include stops in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. To say that I've been busy getting ready for that is an understatement. But today, I wanted to play. I haven't had much time to play in my room so today, I declared it to be "NO PLANNING FOR CAMPING DAY" and I played in my room instead.

I'm entering the following card in several challenges. First, is the retro sketches site. I really liked the sketch for this week. Next, the Lawnscaping site wanted us to use watercolors and gelatos were calling my name. Next, the Simon says site wanted us to emboss--which I combined with the watercoloring. And lastly, the Color Throwdown site provided the color inspiration for the card.

Without further ado, here's my card and the challenge badges will be at the bottom of this post.
There's a new mom at our previous church that just had a baby. What a great excuse to make a card! I knew I wanted to use gelatos as my watercolor medium so I grabbed this Hero Arts background cling stamp (sorry, I couldn't find the name of it anywhere on the Hero Arts site) and white heat embossed it on watercolor paper. I used the yellow gelato color and, honestly, I had forgotten just how vibrant these gelatos are. The yellow was so strong that I added a lot of water to the paper and kept taking some of the color off to see the white resist better, too. Because I was following the sketch, I chose to add strips of turqoise to the side panel and then add vellum as the banner. I punched out some circles and then used a Wplus9 die for the onesie. I used a dollar stamp and some distress inks to stamp the flower on the onesie and then added gems to the center. The sentiment is from Inkadinkadoo and I used StazOn ink to stamp on the vellum. Very fun card to make and I'm sure the new mom will smile.

Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you all have a great weekend!
Pat

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Back after a long absence!

Hi friends!

This summer is proving to be one of the busiest summers! I hope everyone is enjoying theirs so far. I'm sharing a card today that I'm entering into the colourQ and Word Art Wednesday sites. I've been making tons of cards with Copic markers and I'm glad I can finally take some time to share one today. Here's my card and the color badge that challenged me.I know the colors aren't a perfect match but I hope I got the general gist of the challenge! :)

Over a year ago, my son received a very gracious gift from a well-known crafter. She sent him a huge binder full of Autumn Leaves stamps. Although he plays with the stamps, I admit that I've been using them, too! I stamped this image several times on cardstock using Memento ink and then colored in the image with Copic markers. I've only started using these markers so I'm by no means an expert. BUT, they are really great to work with! It's incredibly relaxing to sit and just color an image in and see the depth of the final project. Once the panel was colored in, I added some black strips and then stamped the sentiment. Yes, I'm starting early for next year! :)

Thanks for stopping by!
Pat
Thanks for stopping by!
Pat

Saturday, June 14, 2014

Father's Day card

Hi everyone!

Sorry for the long absence...but I'm finally here sharing a card I made for Father's Day. I used the sketch provided by the Freshly Made Sketches site. LOVED the sketch! And, I'm entering the card in the Word Art Wednesday site, too. Here's the card and the sketch below:

With the World Cup madness in high gear, I figured I'd make a card for my husband that showed what he loved most--soccer! Every 4 years, everything stops so that he can keep up with the matches. I sometimes watch a match with him--but not often! I followed the sketch pretty closely and really liked it. I used a dollar stamp set that I got from Michaels several years ago. I used the green, red, and white colors from the Italy and Mexico teams (some of my husband's favorite teams) to make the card extra special. I also added some glossy accents to the soccer balls so there's tons of texture on the card when you touch the soccer strip. Easy card to make but really cute! I can see myself using the sketch for different themes, too--especially a baby theme! Maybe have a cute little onesie strip...adorable!

Have a wonderful day celebrating the fathers in your life...I know I thank God for the blessing of having a wonderful father and of marrying a man who is also a great dad. Thanks for stopping by!
Pat

Thursday, May 22, 2014

More watercolor fun!

Hi again!

I'm here to share another fun card I made while finishing up the Online Card Class that dealt with watercoloring. I'll also be submitting this card for the latest Simon Says Stamp! challenge. Our challenge is to do something botanical. Here's my card:
I wish I knew who made this stamp but I won it at a local craft store years ago. I chose to begin by stamping the image using versafine ink and then masking off the flower. I then colored in the background. I didn't want to risk the blue color getting on the flower so masking made it easy to color in. I then colored in the image using a combination of distress markers and inktense watercolor pencils. I LOVED using these two mediums together!

The hardest part about watercoloring is waiting for everything to dry so I confess that I did use a heat gun a couple of times. I also stepped away a few times so that I could get a "fresh" look at the panel once I returned to the room. That helped a lot actually! I came back a few times and realized where I wanted to add a bit more color and shading. The sentiment is from Hampton Arts. I added some twine at the top of the card and the card was done.

Thanks so much for stopping by and hope you try using these two mediums also.
Pat

Textured watercoloring

Hi everyone!

I finally got a chance to play in my craft room and I used a technique taught in the Online Card Class that is finishing tomorrow. The class was all about watercoloring. Some of the techniques were probably a bit out of my league but there was one that caught my eye and I've been dying to try it. I'll also be entering this card for the latest Lawnscaping Challenge that was all about distress mania. Here's my card and the challenge badge.
After making some horizontal and vertical score lines on the watercolor paper, I went ahead and used my distress ink pads to create this watercolor background. I chose the colors I wanted and used my nonstick craft sheet to swipe the pads and water them down a bit before pressing the watercolor paper on top. I started with a light blue color and dried after each color application. That way, the color kept building and I could control it a bit better, too, from just getting too muddied up. After several layers of colors, I added some flicks of paint to the panel also. The butterfly is an old stamp from Inkadinkadoo (I think) and I colored it in with distress ink also. I used it as a watercolor and didn't add as much water to the ink when I wanted the color to be brighter on the butterfly. I cut out the butterfly and realized I wanted some shine on it. I added some liquid pearls to it and now it has a lovely shimmer to it. The sentiment is from Hampton Arts and I really like it because you can see through some of the letters but it's still bold enough to make the statement.

This was a really fun technique and it really didn't take as long as I thought it would. Hope you guys try it out, too!

Thanks for stopping by!
Pat

Monday, May 19, 2014

Flower time for Mother's Day

Hi again!

I have a confession. I hadn't jumped on the Copic marker train because I wasn't sure I'd enjoy coloring. I was WRONG! Although there's not much time to craft, I can carry my markers anywhere and color. In fact, I took 'em to the dentist office the other day while the kids were busy getting their cleanings. I LOVE these markers!

I'm entering this card in several different challenges. The first is a Simon Says Stamp! botanical challenge. The second is the Less is More site. The challenge is to also use flowers but it needs to be a clean and simple design--which tends to be a hard one for me! And then I'm sharing it on the Word Art Wednesday site, too. It's an "anything goes" challenge that I always enjoy! Here's my card:
The stamp is from a company that I think isn't around anymore, Autumn Leaves. But the image was perfect for coloring and shading. I stamped the flower several times and then colored it in and cut out a panel. I felt the white space in between the flowers needed a punch of color so I did outline the flowers. Then I framed the panel in black cardstock and stamped the sentiment (from the dollar bin). It's a vibrant color that makes me think of spring and sunny days. This card was so much fun to color and I love how it turned out!

Thanks for stopping by!
Pat

Merry Christmas...in May!

Hi all!

I hope everyone had a lovely weekend. Ours was busy but we're grateful the school year is winding down and the days will be a bit more relaxed. I'm popping in quickly to share a card I made for Christmas. Yes, Christmas. I have a couple of clients that have asked for Christmas cards so I've been making some cards off and on for the occasion. I'm also entering this card in the latest Simon Says Stamp! challenge which was to use dies on our cards. And, the lovely Word Art Wednesday has an "anything goes" challenge which is also fun to do. Here's my card:
I received a lovely poinsettia die set (Memory Box, I think) and I love using it! All you need are a few shades of red and green cardstock and then you assemble the card. I love that you can sit and do tons of die cutting and then assemble the poinsettias in little batches til you're ready to put them on the final card. For this card, I kept it very simple. I wanted the flower wreath to be the focus with the sentiment (Stampendous) right underneath.

Have a great week and thanks for stopping by!
Pat

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Life is Sweeter card

Hi everyone!

I know, it's been a long time since I've posted. I'm really looking forward to the homeschooling year being done so that I can have more time to play in my craft room. For the past week and a half, I've been taking the Online Card class that's all about watercolors. I'm loving the class--but wishing I had more time to play along. So, tonight I'm sharing the card I made for one of the very first days of class. It's a simple color wash for the background. I'll also enter this card into the Word Art Wednesday site that has an "anything goes" challenge. Last, but not least, V's Sweet Ideas' latest challenge was to use distress ink in some way. So, I'll enter my card there, too. Here's my card:
I LOVE this stamp...I just think it's the sweetest image! (It's from Technique Tuesday). I started out by masking off the sides of the watercolor paper. I then stamped the image in Versafine ink and used 4 different distress inks to do the background. (Squeezed Lemonade, Ripe Persimmons, Spiced Marmalade and Barn Door). This technique is SUPER easy...I LOVE it! The sentiment is from Hero Arts and I think it's paired perfectly with the image.

Anyway, I'm hoping to post more cards soon. Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!
Pat

Thursday, April 17, 2014

A fun new die

Hi all! It's been awhile since I've posted but I've been busy getting cards prepped to show soon. I did want to stop in quickly, though, to share a card I'm entering in a couple of challenges. The first challenge is for the Party Time Tuesday site that asked us to use a die. The second site is the Word Art Wednesday site that has an "anything goes" challenge. Here's my card:

This was a fun card to work on. I used a QuicKutz die which was new for me and that gave me the beautiful polaroid cut. The main image is a reverse image stamp from Hero Arts so I stamped it using Memento Brilliance ink. To my surprise, the ink stayed wet enough so that I could add water to it and even out the color. I then colored the image using inktense watercolor pencils and distress markers. I stamped the sentiment and added some gems and the card was done! I will definitely be using this die many times!

Thanks for stopping by! And check out these challenges--there's still time to play along.
Pat

Friday, April 4, 2014

Thinking of You

Hi friends!

Just a quick post to share a card I made last night. I'm entering the card at the Unscripted Sketches site because they provided the fun sketch for the card. Here's the card and sketch.

I really wanted to use some perfect pearls for this one layer card. So, I chose a butterfly stamp (Teresa Collins) and a flourish (not sure which brand of stamps) and used the blue perfect pearl dust. I made sure to put some antistatic powder all over the card first, though, so that the perfect pearls wouldn't stick to anything except the image. After I added the perfect pearls, I used a swiffer dust rag to get the excess powder off and then used a slight mist on the card to set the pearls. I wanted a bit more color, though, so I put a small amount of red and gold perfect pearls on my work surface, added a bit of water to both of them and used my stylus to add some "random" dots and some gold on the butterfly. Super quick card to make--but a lot of fun b/c of the perfect pearls. There's tons of shine to this simple card.


Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!
Pat