Cheers

 One of my favorite ways to get random areas of color . . .

  . . . is to use dried die powders very sparingly over a pre-stamped, misted background.  After picking up a very little amount of the powder with a dry brush, I tap the brush handle lightly where I want the color.  These powders contain powerful, intense color and a very few grains of it will do the job.  I love the mottled look that usually emerges!

 

Cardstock:   Bazzill Bazzill Green, Strathmore #100 Bristol  

Stamps:       Hero Friend Definition

Inks:             Hero Black

Colorants:    Cosmic Shimmer Pixie Powder Rich Gold, Mango

                     Blaze, Nuance Jade

Dies:            Mama Elephant Botanic Envelope, Love Nicole Rose,

                     TopUnder “Three Lobed Flower”, Cheery Lynn Cheers,

                     Wplus9 Banner Trio                   

Doo Dads:    Viva Pearl Pen Sunny Yellow        

Music

 Bill Hall of the William Hall Chorale began his professional career as my church's high school choir director . . .

 

One enduring memory from decades ago comes from a church concert we gave.  The music was approaching a dramatic crescendo when Bill brought his baton up, wacked it into the music stand, and broke the baton in two.  Definitely not a planned part of the concerto. 

So on this card, I gave him a new baton - a toothpick painted black.  I hope he has a few laughs over the memory . . . it definitely was not funny at the time!

 

Cardstock:   Beckett Candlelight, Unknown Burgundy Linen, Scrap

                     Parchment  

Stamps:       Impression Obsession Music, Cat’s Life Press Man with

                     Raised Hand

Inks:             Hero Black, Distress Aged Mahogany, Copic Warm

                     Gray #3

Emb Pwdr:  Vippies Transcendence

Dies:            Gina Marie Stitched Rounded Squares              

Stencil:        The Crafters Workshop Mini Tile Texture

Doo Dads:    toothpick       

Imagine

Here is another version of the Jennifer McGuire technique I posted three days ago . . .

As the camera ate the details, I'll explain them to you:  the black background has a mellow sheen to it and the texture is like that of a stuccoed wall - neither flat nor boring.

The butterfly has a loose smattering of sparkle which the camera always obliterates.  You'll have to trust me on this - the final effect is really pretty . . .

 

Cardstock:   Strathmore Ultimate White

Stamps:       Starving Artistamps “Imagine”, “Splendor”, “Magic”

Inks:             Hero Black, Distress Dusty Concord, Broken China,

                     Tumbled Glass

Emb Pwdr:  All Night Media Silver Tinsel

Dies:            Altenew Doodled Lace, Spellbinders Wonderful Wings

Doo Dads:    ICraft Metallix Gel Black Ice          

Soar

Jennifer McGuire did a recent video on a great technique that I just 

had  to try . . .

 It's simple, truly:

1. Die cut two background openwork/lacy panels and set one aside.

2. Glue the other one down to your card front.

3. Spread your favorite paste, glitter mousse, or textural medium over the 

whole card front.

4. Scrape off the excess so that it's level with the die cut and return to the jar.  Let dry.

5. Glue the second die cut over the whole hot mess.  Voila - instant perfection!

 

Cardstock:   Strathmore Ultimate White

Inks:             Distress Dusty Concord, Chipped Sapphire, Faded Jeans,

                     Mowed Lawn, Twisted Citron

Dies:            Altenew Doodled Lace, Dee’s Distinctively Hummingbird,

                     Hero Frames with Sprigs set, DieVersions font Noodles             

Doo Dads:    Cosmic Shimmer Luna Paste Moonlight Pearl, Cousin Corp 

                        Crystals         

Wild About You

 While I'd wanted to use snippets of doily edges or even white woven fabric trims on my Valentine's cards, the image didn't seem to lend itself to such traditionally lacy embellishments . . .

So I went for my stash of paper trims which seemed to work much better with the dramatic artwork.  I wish for a very Happy Valentine's Day to one and all!

 

Cardstock:   Bazzill Kisses, Strathmore Ultimate White         

Stamps:       Treasure Cay “Love Goddess”, Inky Antics “Wild

                     about you”

Inks:             Gina K Amalgam Black, ColorBox Frost White, Hero

                     Unicorn

Emb Pwdr:  Hero White

Dies:            Sweet ‘n Sassy Hearts set, Cottage Cutz Nested         

                     Stitched Scalloped Square                     

Doo Dads:    Deckle Edge Trimmer, Martha Stewart Paper Borders 

With Sympathy

 This is the first use I've made of this lovely, tree-shaped leafy die . . . 

The underlying layer is dark green for this Sympathy card.  But for Fall cards, I'm thinking of gluing small scraps of red, orange, and yellow for the bottom layer.  Hopefully, that will get me an Autumn tree . . . I'll have to give that a try!  Should make a neat Thanksgiving card if it works . . .

 

Cardstock:   Marcos Jute, Scraps Dark Green, Brown, Cream          

Stamps:       Endless Creations “With Sympathy”

Inks:             ColorBox Cream White

Emb Pwdr:  Stampendous Aged Ivory

Dies:            Memory Box Leaf Canopy, Twiggy Tree, Mama

                     Elephant Peek A Frame, Lil Inker Stitched Mats:

                     Rectangles                

With Sympathy

In a recent blog, Stamper Extraordinaire Jennifer McGuire noted that while Distress inks blend beautifully, Distress Oxide inks are even better when it comes to blend-ability . . .

  . . . so with my Life Changing brushes, I gave the Oxide inks a try on the background panel after putting it through an embossing folder.  She was right . . .  I got the lovely, subtle results I was after.  The Oxide line has a chalky finish which is good for some effects, but I wanted a tiny bit of gleam here, so I spritzed twice with Perfect Pearls spray in gold.

Cardstock:   Simon Says Fog, Strathmore #100 Bristol

Stamps:        Endless Creations “With Sympathy", Vertical

Inks:              Distress Oxide Weathered Wood, Bundled Sage, ColorBox Gold

Emb Pwdr:   Ranger Gold, UTEE Gold

Dies:              Top/Under “Three Lobed Flower”, Spellbinders Hemstitched 0

                        Rectangles   

Emb Fldr:      Gemini Regency Swirls

Doo Dads:    Perfect Pearls spray Gold, Viva Paper Pen Gold