Memories

Concord & 9th's newest Turnabout stamp set was just released and I had to have it.  I've long wanted the ability to make a multi-image background in several colors and now I can . . .

The two embossed flowers are in honor of a wedding anniversary.  As Jack died only two months ago, this is Eleanor's first anniversary date without him.  Speaking from experience, I can attest to the fact that "firsts" are the hardest.  I hope this brings her some comfort.

Cardstock:   Bazzill Admiral, Strathmore #100 Bristol

Stamps:       Concord & 9^th Turnabout: Blooms

Inks:             Ancient Page Pine, Leaf Green, Indigo, Mandarin,

                     Distress Mustard Seed, ColorBox Gold

Emb Pwdr:   Ranger Gold

Dies:            Waffle Flower Lacy Layers 2, My Favorite Things

                     Stitched Mini Scallop Rectangle, Simon Says Fresh

                     Daisies, Goodculler Stitched Rectangles, YPP Craft 
                     "Memories”                      

Shine

My love affair with alcohol inks continues . . .

Recent posts have shown other examples of this technique and if you scroll down to my last post, there is a link to a video on the process.

For today's card,  I used a favorite easy technique with embossing powder.  By not heating it until it's completely smooth, wonderful texture is possible to achieve.  Although this works with any embossing powder, the best type to use is UTEE.  The granules are so thick that it takes longer for them to melt.  So it's easy to control the amount of heat and the best time to turn it off.

The trick is to heat it just enough to soften the granules so that they fuse but still leave some texture behind.  As always, a little practice will teach you everything you need to know . . . have fun!

Cardstock:   Bazzill Buckeye, Kachina, Generic Glossy White         

Stamps:       Kaiser Marble

Inks:             Adirondack Alcohol Inks Ginger, Stream, VersaMark

Emb Pwdr:   WOW Ultra High Gold Rich, BMuse Devil’s Food Delight

Dies:            Hero Nested Frame Cuts: Rectangle, Simon Says Butterfly

                     Drift, Recollection Word Feti: “Shine”                      

Cheers

My recently re-discovered love for all things growing and plant-ly has guided me towards some wonderful stamps and dies.  A new favorite die set produced the following . . .

I think the hanging pots are such charmers!  A simple color scheme and some background texture seemed to be all that was needed for this card . . .

Cardstock:   Stedner Bright White, Generic scraps Tan, Green, Red,

                     Orange, Yellow           

Inks:             Ancient Page Reinkers Pine, Lime, Lemon Peel

Dies:            Kscraft Hanging Pots, Nellie’s Straight Dotted Oval,

                     Impression Obsession Small Bow, Waffle Flower Tiny

                     Twine Bow, Cheery Lynn Cheers             

Emb Fldr:     Love Nicole Cable Knit

Impr Plate:   Cheery Lynn Old Brick

Celebrate

As a Staff Writer for RubberStampMadness magazine, I have wonderful access to creative ideas from a variety of artists.  One of my recent interviews was with artist Nancy RIng, AKA "Inky", and from her I learned a wonderful new technique to try . . .

One of her favorite coloring methods is to use a Dove Blender pen with watercolor pencils.  I tried it on the flower petals and leaves and had me a wonderful time!  The blending was quick, very smooth and extremely easy.  I'll be doing this frequently in future.

Cardstock:   Bazzill Fire Hearts, Bristol #100 Smooth White, Generic

                     scraps Black         

Stamps:       Stampendous Beaded Bloom, Purple Daisy Sand

Inks:             ColorBox Black, Hero Black

Waterclrs:    Inktense Apple Green, Spring Green, Tangerine, Burnt

                     Orange, Poppy Red, Scarlet Pink

Emb Pwdr:   Judikins Detail Black

Dies:            Cottage Cuts Nested Stitched Scallop Square, Impression

                     Obsession Congrats Set: "Celebrate”                

Doo Dads:    Dove Blender, Inkssentials Glossy Accents, Enamel

                     Accents: Black, Gelly Roll Clear

Sparkle

Lately, I've been having lots of fun playing with alcohol inks.   Guest blogger Mindy Eggen appeared on Jennifer McGuire's blog recently and presented a novel way to get alcohol inks to spread.  Here's one of my first results with the technique . . .

Spoiler alert:  she used a blow dryer to move the inks around and quickly dry them!  I loved the idea and was thrilled with the ease at which this worked.  My blow dryer has a cool setting and also a low speed setting - both of which I found very useful for this method.

So now I have a stack of blow dried alcohol ink backgrounds and will be exploring  many more ways to play with this idea for future posts.  Take a look at her video here and then grab your own hair dryer and have some fun!

Cardstock:   Bazzill Green, Tim Holtz Alcohol Ink Cardstock

Stamps:       Stampin’ Up “Sparkle”

Inks:             Adirondack Alcohol Ink Bottle, Eggplant

Colorants:    Adirondack Mixatives Gold, Stamp Zia Metallic Flows Gold

Emb Powder:   WOW Gold Glitter

Dies:            Mama Elephant Femme Frames, DieNamics Stitched

                     Traditional Tag Stax, Tim Holtz Cut Out Leaves               

Doo Dads:    91% isopropyl alcohol, Nicole Extra Fine Glitter Champagne

Love

Some more fun with alcohol ink backgrounds . . .

For a little variety, I also did this layout using gold embossing powder applied with a marble image stamp.  Both products are listed below.

One of the occasional drawbacks with the use of alcohol inks is their tendency to remain sticky, especially when used with glossy paper.  A handy work-around for that is to brush on some gilding flakes.  In this case I used a mixture of reds plus some silver.  Voila!  End of sticky and a little glitz to rescue the situation and liven things up a bit.

Cardstock:   Bazzill Kisses, Glossy cardstock White   

Stamps:       Kaiser Marble

Inks:             Adirondack Alcohol Inks Red Pepper, Raisin, ColorBox Gold,                                                 Silver, VersaMark

Emb Powder:   Pipe Dream Ink Zeehan OR WOW Gold Ultra High,

                         Stamp A Mania Desert Fire

Dies:            Our Daily Bread Ornate Hearts, Mama Elephant Peek a

                     Frame, Dee See Love                            

Doo Dads:    Mark Richards Nailheads Silver

Broccoli or Ice Cream

One of the really fun things about stamping for me is to find ways to use images that might be different than what the designer first envisioned.  Anything that stretches my collection seems like a good idea to me . . .

The bunches of broccoli images on this card are actually trees!  The coloring was concentrated in various areas and enhanced with a few added pen squiggles to suggest broccoli florets.  The original image is pretty much an outline of a fully leafed tree - the designer left most of the interior open because she thought it would be great to use it for clouds.  She was right!  But I needed broccoli for this card, so that's what it became.

As with anything artistic, learning how to really see is part of the process of growing your talent.  I'm still working very hard on that aspect of design . . .

Cardstock:  Bazzill Raven, Premier #100 Bristol Smooth White      

Stamps:       Rubber Baby Tree, Stampin Up Itty Bitty Backgrounds,

                     Purple Daisy Sand

Inks:             ColorBox Black, Hero Black, Distress Iced Spruce,

                     Mowed Lawn, Pine Needles

Emb Pwdr:  Judikins Detail Black

Dies:            Goodculler Stitched Rectangles               

Doo Dads:   Inkssentials Enamel Accents Black        

Thank You

Another rescue from my stash . . .

There's just something about that bird with his star that really grabs me.  In addition to Christmas, I think he's usable on many occasions.  It would be great for an encouragement card, such as for a student in a school play, or anyone stepping up to a new job . . .

Cardstock:           Bazzill Raven, Generic scraps Dull Silver, Kraft

Stamps:                River City Crow with Star, Hero Thanks Galore Set,

                              Stamp a Mania Line Background

Inks:                      ColorBox Black, Silver

Emb Powder:        Ranger Silver

Doo Dads:             Black and Silver fibers, Silver feather charms,

                               Deckled scissors