May Happy Little Stamper's Watercolor Challenge

 It is time for the May Watercolor Challenge at Happy Little Stampers.  

Our watercolor challenge is one of the best because it is "anything goes".

I made a slimline card for the May Watercolor Challenge.  This is a new stamp from Unity Stamp Company.  I stamped the image with black ink and heat embossed with clear embossing powder.   The entire image was colored with one container of Brusho.  The color of Brusho was Sea Green.  

I sprinkled very small amounts of Sea Green Brusho on the image in different areas.  I spritzed with water and then moved the color around.  If I needed extra color, I would sprinkle on some more of the Brusho.  I would just lift the extra color with my brush if the color was too deep.  You can see all the different levels of color I achieved from Sea Green Brusho.  I die cut the sentiment from several layers of black card stock and glued together for some depth.  To finish the card it was mounted onto a black card base and clear glass baubles were glued to the card front.  

Here is a close up of one of the flowers and all the different shades of color I achieved from one container of Brusho.

Here is a close up of some of the baubles.

Please join us at Happy Little Stampers for our May Watercolor Challenge.  

Thanks for stopping by.

Happy Earth Day

 I wanted to share a card I made using recycled items.

This image was on a Christmas card I received a few years ago.  I used a rectangle die and cut it out.  I then matted it with dark brown card stock which was in my scrap bin.  The sentiment was also die cut from this same scrap.  The image has a very linen like texture.

Remember to recycle some of your stuff into cards.

Oldie Moldie Monday

 It is Monday - time to show some love for your old supplies.

I found this small piece of patterned paper on my design table.  I had looked at Hobby Lobby for one sheet of it but they do not carry it any more.  I thought it would make some great masculine cards for my Birthday Project.  

I just found more old scraps of paper to finish the card.  One more masculine card made.

Remember to show some love for your old supplies.

Finding Some Creative Mojo

 My card making Mojo had gone on a walkabout but I think it is coming back.  Thank goodness.  I do admit I have been doing some other creative things such as art journaling and mixed media.  I do love getting messy also.

Today I am playing along with the current challenge at Twofer.  This challenge is where you use the same stamp, die, stencil and made two different cards for two different occasions.  Each card must have a different design.  This month the challenge is leaves - one of my favorite subjects to craft with.  I did get carried away (in a good way) and made four cards.

I had a die set in my collection which had never met the die cutting machine.  Today was the day I used it.  It is a pretty group of leaves.  

Here are my two cards for the Twofer challenge.

For this card I die cut the leaves out of a piece of card stock and made a stencil.  For my card, I first did a little ink smooshing to give a little color to the background.  I then used my handmade stencil to stencil the leaves around the card front.  I used four different colors of distress oxide ink.  I die cut the panel, matted it with brown and then added a gold mat.  I added a die cut word to the front for a Thanksgiving card.  I completed the card with some gold splatters.

On this card I die cut two of the branches out of kraft card stock and then smooshed them into several different shades of distress oxide ink.  I never did use a blue ink on the leaves but one of the colors has a blue undertone.  I love the color on the leaves.  I ink smooshed the background.  I trimmed one branch a little and then glued them on a diagonal across the front of the card.  I heat embossed the sentiment, added a twine bow, added a green mat and added the sentiment strip across the center of the card.  The card front was matted with green and added to a kraft card base.  I added ink splatters of one of the greens.

 

Here are the bonus card.  This was the panel which I cut the stencil from.  After I had finished stenciling the first card, I did a bunch of ink smooshing of oxide inks to achieve the fun color on the front.  You can not even see the color left over on the front from stenciling.  I die cut a branch from red card stock.  The front panel was matted with a goldish and red card stock.  I inlaid the red branch into the opening.

I colored this branch the same way as the branches in the second card.  I was thinking I might need three branches for that card.  I did not need a third branch so I had a leftover branch and I had to use it.  I ink smooshed my background, die cut the front panel and matted it with green.  The sentiment was heat embossed onto the card front.  

This was a productive day for me in the card making department.  I ma happy with how the cards  turned out.

Thanks for stopping by.  

Oldie Moldie Monday

 It is Monday - time to show some love for your old supplies.

I needed to make a birthday card for my great nephew who is turning 18.  I find it so difficult to make cards for teenage boys.  Something kicked in my memory and I remembered some old wildlife rubber stamps I had.  They are very detailed so you didn't need to much to them besides stamp them.

The cat I stamped for my nephew's card, I did color with oxide inks.  I just used old different shades of brown card stock to finish the card.  Many of the dark brown pieces were in my scrap bin.

This card was even simpler.  I did not color the image.  It is monochromatic.  A great masculine card.

It is for my birthday project.

Remember to show some love for your old supplies.  They still make great cards.

Happy Little Stampers April Christmas Challenge

 It is time for a new Christmas Challenge at Happy Little Stampers.  Isn't it great to get a start on your Christmas cards so when December comes around you have a few in that box ready to send. 

As always, our challenge is "anything goes" but we do offer you an optional twist if you wish to use it.  This month the optional twist is "Under the Tree."  

Well, instead of "under the tree", I decided to do the tree.  I had seen this new layered stencil at Trinity Stamps last fall when it was first released and I was finally able to order it.  I thought it was so fun and offered so many creative opportunities.

I chose to use oxide inks in blue shades for my color palette.  I first smooshed some ink on the white background (I have a real hard time with white backgrounds).  The ink smooshing is very subtle but I know it is there.  The stencil has four layers.  The three colors of oxide ink I used are Salty Ocean, Faded Jeans and Blueprint Sketch.  The fourth layer was Nuvo Glacier Paste Quicksilver.

The sentiment was stamped on vellum and heat embossed in silver.  The tree background was matted with navy blue and added to a white card base.  I completed the card with ink splatters in White Iridescent Ink.

Here is a close up of the sentiment.

Here is a close up of some the dots.

Please come join us at Happy Little Stampers for our April Christmas Challenge.  

Oldie Moldie Monday

It is Oldie Moldie Monday - time to show some love for your old supplies.

I was recently in an ATC swap and the theme was doily.  I have a drawer full of doilies.

The burlap fabric which is backed with paper is old - I only have two sheets left of it.  The hearts are from fabric which I fussy cut out.  The lace is in the lace box.  An old dictionary page was used for the paper hearts.  I did have to buy buttons but they were half price.  

 I really enjoyed making these ATC's.