Congratulations

This is my first attempt at working with a very unique product – Viva’s Inka Gold.  It’s exciting stuff and I hope the camera does at least some justice to this card’s gleaming background . . .

Inka Gold is non-toxic, has a beeswax base, and gives a lustrous metallic finish using just a sponge.  You can buff it after it dries (a mere minute, if that) and the finish is permanent.  At this point, you can stamp on it, or stamp and heat emboss for a wonderful effect.  The ad says that one jar will cover up to 80 square feet, so there are lots of lovely cards lurking in each container.  There are a number of how-to videos online, so Google them and get going!

 

Cardstock:                     Generic textured Purple, Bazzill White, Beckett Iceberg

Stamps:                          Judikins Deco Flowers, Too Much Fun “Congratulations”

                                             100 Proof Press Sunburst

Inks:                                Inka Gold Emerald, Purple, Platinum, Cobalt Blue,

                                         Distress Dusty Concord, Gelly Roll Clear Star pen  

Emb Powder:                Judikins Opaque White, Vippies Transcendence

Dies/Punches:              Memory Box Fresh Daisies, Michael Strong Cloisonné Flower,

                                           MFT Accent It Labels & Tags, 1/8” corner rounder punch

Doo Dads:                      Marquise-shaped crystals      

Hello Sunshine

I don’t know what it is about stamped images of little houses that fascinates me so much but I find them irresistible.  I have several sets of them and should probably do a mini-series on "Neighborhoods I Have Never Known But Loved Nonetheless."  Meanwhile, this layout was probably inspired by images of brightly-colored African or Caribbean homes that make me happy just to think about them, let alone see them . . .

There was a fair amount of trouble in getting this card together:  it just wasn’t happening.  So I put it aside and began a long overdue all-out swatching frenzy of my ink pad collection.  As it numbers around 600 pads (I am a creature of some excess), this was no small task.  It took me five days and I can probably say that I am truly the better person for it.  I will re-visit this inkpad topic again in future:  the creative ramifications of this adventure are vast and I would like to share at least a few of them. 

Currently, suffice it to say that for this card, once I dumped all the rules of conventional perspective, it happened.  The results are very simple, whimsical, and quite cheerful – exactly what I was after . . .

Cardstock:       Generic textured Yellow, Beckett Iceberg
Stamps:             Houses and text from Hero Homey Patterns, Rubber Baby
                               Buggy Bumpers Stone Wall
Inks:                   ColorBox Black                                                             
Markers/Pencils: Memento Dandelion, Tombow #57, Marvy Black, #51,
                               Zig Shangri-La, Buttercup, Hyacinth, Pure Yellow, Baby Blue,
                                Spring Green, Sakura Glaze Black, Crayola pencil Metallic Silver
Emb Powder:  Judikins Detail Black  
Punches:           Fiskars Clouds in two sizes     
Doo Dads:        deckle-edged scissors

Your Special Day

Scraps, Leftovers, Recycled, and the timeless wisdom of “Waste-Not-Want-Not”:  all good!  Today’s card is made almost entirely from the leftovers of one of the six cards I’m submitting to the NJ State Fair next month.  Whether I win any ribbons or not, I’ll be posting the cards in mid-August after the Fair.  Meanwhile, you can view this card as a sort of Sneak Peak . . .

Lately, I’ve been having fun challenging myself with putting the scraps to use right after finishing up a project.  After all, the coordinating materials are still on my desk, so what can I do with the the leftovers to create something at least a little different?   Check out my blog on August 19^th for a look at the original . . .

Cardstock:                     Bazzill Bon Bon, Generic Watercolor paper, textured cardstock

Stamps:                          Hero Old Letter Writing, Your Special Day, Oogala “Sending Love”
Inks:                                Distress Fired Brick, Brushed Corduroy (pad and marker)                   
Emb Powder:                Vippie Transcendence
Dies/Punches:               Spellbinders Classic Rectangle, EK Success Arrows,
                                           Scalloped Corner, 5/8” Circle

Feel Better Soon

My beloved Scrap Stash to the rescue yet again . . .

I was playing around one day with watercolor paper, some bright colors of Vivid inks and my mister.  After a number of direct-to-paper dabs with the ink pads and some random misting, I had me a nice little collection of background papers ready to come to the rescue when events happen and response time is short.

I found the bird in my Scrap Stash too:  a few seconds of fun with two shades of Distress markers and my trusty mister and voila!  He became my perky focal point.

MORAL OF THE STORY:  save everything!

Cardstock:                     Marcos Jute, Generic watercolor paper

Stamps:                          KaiserCraft Birdies, Too Much Fun “Feel better soon!”
Inks:                                ColorBox Frost White, Distress Salty Ocean, Distress
                                            Markers Faded Jeans, Tumbled Glass, Vivid various
                                            colors                                                 
Emb Powder:                Judikins Opaque White
Dies/Punches:              Spellbinders Fleur de Lis Pendants,  Papertrey Ink Angled Labels,
                                           1/8" corner rounder
Doo Dads:                      White heart-shaped brads     

 

Celebrate

If you knew the design I originally had in mind when I started this card, you would not recognize the results.  They’re not remotely in the same ballpark . . .
 

 . . . sometimes, The Muse takes unplanned detours during the creative journey.  I used to squawk when this happened, but I’ve learned that it’s usually best to just cooperate.  I now trundle along in the new direction, and come back to the original plan another day. 

 

If it still seems like a good idea, that is . . .

Cardstock:         Bazzill Sweetheart, PaperCut Brown Umber, Beckett Iceberg,

                                 Watercolor paper      
Stamps:              Above the Mark Baroque Flower, VAP “Celebrate”          
Inks:                    Ancient Page Flannel Grey, Distress Walnut Stain, Aged Mahogany
                              (markers & ink pads)
Emb Powder:    Vippies Transcendence 
Dies/Punches:   Spellbinders Blossom Tag, Hero Small Tag Frame            
Doo Dads:          Pearls, rose & silver seed beads, Pearl Pen Ice White

Celebrate

Spoiler Alert!  Guy card just ahead . . .

 

Not long ago, A Blog Named Hero here  showed some lovely work using rainbow hues paired with black stripes and butterflies.  I’m saving the butterfly ideas for some upcoming Gal cards – meanwhile, I went to town with some arrow dies and am reasonably happy with the results.  Mounting the die cuts slightly offset from their matching openings gives the white background a chance to zing things up.  Of course, a little help from my glittery Clear Star pen doesn’t hurt either, even though the camera has probably eaten it up as always . . .  

Cardstock:                        Bazzill White, Beckett Iceberg, Generic Black scraps

Stamps:                            Impression Obsession Thin Stripes, Printworks “Celebrate”
Inks:                                  Distress Barn Door, Ripe Persimmon, Mustard Seed,
                                               Mowed Lawn, Faded Jeans, Chipped Sapphire,
                                               Dusty Concord, Ancient Page Coal, Gelly Roll Clear Star pen
Emb Powder:                   Judikins Detail Black
Dies/Punches:                 Die-Namics Lead the Way (arrows), Spellbinders
                                              You Are Here (Hand + one arrow), 1/8” corner rounder

A Magic Day

My young friend Joshua’s 12^th birthday is coming up and I thought he’d enjoy this card . . .

 

Joshua's family once lived two doors down from us but they have since moved a few miles away.  He and his sister Ashley used to spend half their free time on our 6’ indoor trampoline so I think he’ll enjoy the happy memories this stamp surely brings . . .

Cardstock:                        Marcos Jute, Beckett Iceberg

Stamps:                            Cat’s Life Press Boy in Swimsuit, Rubber Baby Buggy Bumpers
                                               Trampoline, Unknown “A Magic Day”
Inks:                                  ColorBox Black, Archival Jet Black, Distress Gathered Twigs
Colored Pencils:              Crayola Silver, Prisma True Blue, Beige Sienna, Seashell Pink,
                                               Sienna Brown, Sandbar Brown, Chestnut
Emb Powder:                   Judikins Detail Black
Emb Folder:                     Hero Chevrons
Dies/Punches:                 ¼“ corner rounder
Doo Dads:                        Decorative brads

Tomorrow We Eat Broccoli

Back to my beloved Khaki again, folks!  C’mon, admit it:  Khaki with Red is hard to beat . . .

 

I may have found the perfect use for Designer papers!   These pre-printed papers usually make me feel a little like I’m cheating by using them instead of my own stamped efforts.  But there’s no questioning their beauty, and there are thousands of truly lovely patterns out there.  So I’ll fudge a bit here and there:  lately I’ve found that narrow strips of designer patterns in coordinating colors can really tie a card’s layout together.

My resistance is melting:  today a quarter inch – tomorrow the whole card front.  Sigh . . .

Cardstock:                        Marcos Jute, Beckett Iceberg, Designer paper

Stamps:                            Judikins Deco Flower Background, Creative Catalyst Tweed Border,
                                              Inkadinkado “Tomorrow we eat broccoli”, Mesh brayer
Inks:                                  Archival Jet Black, Ancient Page Cardinal, Distress Old Paper
Emb Powder:                   Vippies Transcendence, Judikins Detail Black
Emb Folder:                     Spellbinders M-Bossabilities So Trendy/B
Dies/Punches:                 ¼ “ corner rounder
Doo Dads:                        Jute bow, Red eyelets, Red marker, deckle-edged scissors

Who's Turning 3

As this card is for a three-year old, the original idea was to keep it simple.  However, The Muse got a little carried away and like Topsy, the card just grew . . .

 

Somewhere in the middle of the growth spurt, I realized that Memory Box’s Fresh Daisies die cut would make a great armature for balloons if I covered up the flower heads with some stamped, cut out balloons.  So that’s what I did, pop-dotting  the balloons for added dimension.  The flower stems became balloon strings which I painted black and glued over the Flower Boy’s right arm.  On another scrap of cardstock, I stamped and embossed just his right arm (yes, we’re talkin’ tiny here), cut it out, pop-dotted it and glued it over the balloon strings.  Magic!  At least until some very excited three-year old little fingers get a hold of it . . .

Cardstock:                       Bazzill Simon, Terra Cotta, Paper Cut Matte        

Stamps:                            All Night Media Flower Boy, Impress ‘Look who’s turning’,
                                              Hero Birthday Balloons
Inks:                                  ColorBox Black, a variety of Distress markers, Gelly Roll White pen                  
Emb Powder:                   Judikins Detail Black, Vippies Transcendence                
Dies/Punches:                 Wplus9 Banner Trio, JustRite Star Charm, Sizzlets number 3,
                                                 Memory Box Fresh Daisies