Thursday, December 30, 2010

Meowy Christmas & Happy Mew Year!

Gosh. I love puns. And I love cats. So when I discovered Purrs & Pants rubber stamps at Heirloom's Allentown show, I had to cave. I've been using the two stamps I purchased and send in some cards for publication. Two were picked up and are in the current issue of Crafts 'n Things. Purrs & Pants has a publication policy, so I dutifully notified Tricia who sent me unmounted stamps in payment! Yahoo!

Here's the first card using Cats Caroling, which is one of my new Purrs & Pants stamps.



I colored this seriously cute image with Copic markers and then used a Spica pen on the light and covered the light and lantern with Glaze pens to give it dimension. I've been having fun with my white Flock recently and never put it away, so I used it for the pom-poms on the cats' hats.

The plaid patterned paper is from Daisy D (insert sad face). The music paper is from 7 Gypsies. The red speckly cardstock is super-old Doodlebug from my scrap pile. I backed a clear button with the reverse side of the music paper and used some really fab music ribbon. The sentiment is from the Give a Little set by The Cat's Pajamas. There's a sentiment there that says "Believe in Elves". I always read it as "Believe in Elvis". Just sharin'. Hah!

Thanks for visiting today!

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Bombshell Sketch Card plus a Giveaway!

I inadvertently ended up with a duplicate Butterfly Queen set and got authorization to give it away as blog candy. I decided to make a Christmas card using this set so you could see the focal image in action. I took my December Bombshell sketch and flipped it on its side.

Here's the card:


I stamped the Butterfly Queen and added the Santa Hat from the Holiday Accessory set. I had just heard both Blue, Blue Christmas and Santa Baby on the radio, so I decided to color her blue. I pulled out some Figgy Pudding Basic Grey paper (6x6 pad) and 12x12, matched the paper with Copic markers, and had at it. I added a bit of white flock to her hat on the band and pom-pom. Then I realized that I hadn't stamped her straight, so I cut her out and mounted her on a Nestability diecut that was adorned with Stickles.

White shimmery cardstock was used for the large Sizzlet snowflakes and the smaller punched ones.

If you want to win the Butterfly set, you need to make a card using the sketch and share it on BOTH Bombshell's forum and on the Bombshell Blog. You have until January 6th to finish your card and get it posted.

You can see the sketch on my blog below or here on Bombshell's forum.

Please note that this giveaway is separate from the regular monthly prize!!!

Thanks for visiting!!!

Monday, December 27, 2010

Here's the third and last card (for today) using the Santa's Sleigh image from the Holly Jolly Christmas set by Technique Tuesday.



This time, I used stamp set #10 from the Queen of Tarts collection by Character Constructions. I colored the city and the sky with Copic markers and then stamped and heat embossed Santa and his sleigh in the sky.

The sentiment is from the Holiday Accessory set by Bombshell Stamps.

I have no idea who makes the patterned paper.

Thanks for visiting!

Santa Rides Again! -- Variation #2

Here's the second card using the Santa's Sleigh image from the Holly Jolly Christmas set by Technique Tuesday.



I created this scene using the same masking, reverse, masking, and sponging technique as noted on the previous post. It's so much shimmier in real life. Oh well. I also stamped and heat embossed Santa and his sleigh, though I left the reindeer's noses alone this time. :D

Glitter was added to the crests of the hills to make it look like a snowy scene that bears no resemblance whatsoever to our 18" of snow that we received last night and early today.

The sentiment is from a sentiment set by Purple Onion Designs.

Thanks for visiting!

Post Holiday Card Posting!

I've been such a bad blogger this past month. Time has just flown by since Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving, Chanukah, family parties, funerals, and a milestone (21st--not mine) birthday kept me busy and without a lot of excess energy or mojo. I did have pent-up ideas, just time and inclination didn't simultaneously occur until sometime last week. Needless to say my cards did not go out yet. I figure that I'll send 'em soon and people will just think I'm a master procrastinator.

Here's the first in a series of cards using the Santa's Sleigh image from the Holly Jolly Christmas set by Technique Tuesday. I love this set and have ideas for the other stamps in the set too.



I recently discovered that if you sponge dye ink over white metallic Recollections cardstock, the ink comes out shimmery. So I masked, reverse masked, sponged with Distress ink, and heat embossed to make the background scene. Then I stamped the Santa and sleigh image and heat embossed it in black.

All patterned papers are from 7 Gypsies 6x6 paper pads, albeit different pads. I used a Tim Holtz mask and sponged ink over it onto the map paper. I sponged ink onto the music paper to age it too. I used the music paper because I added a glittery red nose to the lead reindeer and was singing the Rudolph song while doing so.

I repeatedly stamped "Ho, Ho, Ho" with an old stamp by Hero arts with the Merry Christmas sentiment from Bombshell Stamps' Holiday Accessory set. I love that font!


Thanks for visiting!

Friday, December 10, 2010

December Bombshell Sketch Challenge!

Sorry I've been a bit absent from the blog lately. I've been bogged down with lots of stuff. I'm a bit bummed since I've been so good the last few months about keeping my blog updated. I hope to get back on track next week!

Here's December's Sketch for Bombshell Stamps! As usual, feel free to flip it, flop it, and make it your own. If you use Bombshell Stamps, please share it with us on Bombshell's forum and on Bombshell's new blog! You could win a fabulous prize!!!


Here's my take on the sketch:


I used the cute Santa bear and the gift stack from Bombshell's Holiday Accessory set. I created the scene with a bit of masking, then put it through my Big Shot with a Spellbinder's die. I kept the paper in the die and sponged on some Distress ink. The scene was colored with Copic markers. I added some white flocking to Santa bear's hat. I stamped the sentiment and then used a label die the same way, to cut and then as a mask to color the sentiment with sponged ink. The patterned paper is from the Eskimo Kisses 6x6 pad by Basic Grey.

Thanks for visiting today!

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

It's Technique Tuesday Tuesday!

There's a tag challenge going on at Technique Tuesday's Splitcoast forum. Since tomorrow is the first night of Chanukah and since I have lots of wrapping and gift identifying to do, I decided to make a Chanukah gift tag. Since I didn't have any Technique Tuesday Chanukah stamps, I had to improvise! I looked through my TT binder and had a "Eureeka Moment!

Here it is!


I used the scalloped banner from the Message in a Banner set by Technique Tuesday to create a Star of David. I stamped using blue Memento ink onto white Basics patterned paper by Basic Grey. I then colored the circles with yellow and blue Copic markers. Something was missing, so I colored some random circles violet!

The sentiment is from a sentiment set by Purple Onion Designs. That set is one of my best investments ever!

I colored the blue and white ribbons with yellow marker to make 'em all matchy matchy.

By the way, Chanukah can be spelled many different ways because it's a transliteration of the Hebrew word for Chanukah. That's today's factoid! :D

Thanks for visiting today!

Monday, November 29, 2010

My Bombshell "Black Friday" Challenge Card

Mary H., Ms. November (Bombshell's Guest Designer) set the theme for a November Challenge, which was "Black Friday", where we were challenged to use black. I decided to use one of my most favorite Bombshell stamps, the Full Sail Ship from the Homeward Bound set.

Here it is:


I colored the ship with my Copic markers in shades of grey. Then I heat set the skull and sword from A Pirate's Life set with white embossing powder. I diecut the image and sponged a bit of Distress Ink onto it while it was still in the die. The sunset, clouds, sky, and sea were then colored with Copic markers. Whitecaps were added with an Inksentials white gel pen. Pewter and Black Soot Stickles were used to edge the oval.

The patterned paper is from Basic Grey. After layering the paper, I used an Ideology Compass mask and sponged Distress Ink over it several times.

The sentiment is from the Homeward Bound set, which was then overstamped with an empty banner from the Banner Sayings set. I colored the banner with the same Copic greys, then cut it out. Both the ship oval and the sentiment were popped up on dimensionals.

The photo is a bit lopsided, caused by my mad photography skillz compounded the after-effects of several hours of eye exams. *sigh* Plus, I took the photo at night indoors. I'll try for a better photo if the weathr cooperates tomorrow.

Thanks for visiting today!

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Wild and Free



I'll freely state that I love sunsets and am fascinated by them, so I continue to keep trying to capture them. This attempt uses several of the new western-themed digital stamps by Bombshell Stamps, which is running a fabulous Black Friday Sale this weekend. Plus, if you sign up as a blog follower, you get the chance to win a fabulous prize.

Anyways, I digress. The big rearing horse is from the Wild Horses digital set. The cacti and the clouds are from the Desert Background digital set.

The nice thing about digital stamps is that you can change their sizes and orientations, so I did just that. Then I printed out my little scene, colored the horse, cacti, and clouds with my Copic markers. I heat embossed them with clear embossing powder to act as a resist, used the negative of a circle punch as a reverse mask, then sponged Distress and Memento inks to create a setting sun. The next step was to mask the sun with the circle and sponge the sky and desert. I added shadows with Copic marker. I have no idea if I got the position of the shadows correct, but perfection is overrated. *grin*

When I was moderately happy with my little scene, I realized it was really too big for a card, so I decided to make it into a wall hanging. So, I made a frame from old Cosmo Cricket wood-grain paper, heat embossed it, added the pewter eyelets (almost exhausted my stash of those though I have a gazillion colored ones), and added the twine. I computer generated the sentiment, printed it out on parchment paper, then stamped an empty banner from the Banner Sayings set over the words, added some Copic shading, then cut it out and glued it onto the frame. The frame is popped up with dimensional tape and was put over the scene which was matted on green and white cardstock. The angle of the phototograph makes it look uneven, but it is moderately even in real life.

I've got it hanging up on my wall now! Yay.

Thanks for visiting today!

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Thanksgiving Third Coast Thursday


The Kitty Fairy (CH-681-G) is a Third Coast stamp which was colored with Copic markers. The branch and leaves are from the Fall on Me set by Technique Tuesday and were stamped with Memento inks and accented with Copic markers. The sentiment is from the Mixed Messages set by Paper Trey Ink.

The patterned papers are from the Restoration 6x6 pad by Crate paper (the mat layer). The background papers are from the Indian Summer 6x6 pad by Basic Grey.

Happy Thanksgiving and thanks for visiting today!

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Bombshell Stamps Blog Contest!

To kick it off and celebrate the new blog, there's a "Follow This Blog" Contest! It's super easy to enter, and the winner will have their choice of 2 stamp sets (1 rubber + 1 digital)!!!

The contest rules are as follows:
1. Sign up to follow the blog by December 20th, 2010.
2. Provide a post on your personal blog promoting the contest (current followers just need to add a post to their blog).

Here's a link for you, so click on over and sign up as a follower!

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

It's Technique Tuesday Tuesday again!

I missed a few weeks of my Technique Tuesday Tuesdays because I was away on vacation. However, I did bring stamps, Inktense pencils, and some Copic markers with me and played whenever I got a chance. I must say that there's something very relaxing and civilized about sitting outside by a pool, under some palm trees, coloring.

I didn't put together many cards, just card fronts, so it's taken me a little while to turn them into full cards.

That turned out to be okay because we've had a death in the family, so I needed to make a condolence card. Here it is.


I stamped the maple and oak leaves from the Fall on Me set by Technique Tuesday and colored them with my Inktense pencils. The colors are much more intense than watercolor pencils. Plus, when they dry, the color is permanent and translucent and lends itself to layering of colors.

The sentiment is from the Mixed Messages set by Paper Trey. The patterned paper is by Cosmo Cricket. I colored the white thread in the ribbon with a Copic marker. It looks much cooler irl.

Thanks for visiting today!

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Howdy Again!



Yep. Back with another card using Bombshell's new Western-themed digital stamp release, which includes six sets! Yeehaw.

This one was colored with Copics. The patterned paper is a bandana print from Flair Designs. I added one layer of fringed paper trim by Doodlebug, which was colored with Copics. Then I added a rub-on "Howdy", which wasn't straight and made my inner Virgo control freak miserable, so I added two more layers of fringe to cover it up. I actually like this version better, so it was a "happy accident". It was still missing something, so I added hemp twine and a tag with a hand written "Howdy" on it.

Thanks for visiting.

Friday, November 19, 2010

Kick up your heels & celebrate! Another new release card!



Here's another birthday card using one of the new Western-themed digital stamps from Bombshell. I'm essentially ignorant of all things equine AND I was on vacation, away from Google, so I had to wing it as far as coloring the horse and its accessories. I hope I got it right.

I colored with Copic markers, used Glaze pen on the hooves, and used old, beloved Flair Designs papers from my stash with the leather-look specialty paper from FiberMark.

This image was colored the day after flying down to Florida. Apparently, my E35 marker had some problem with the pressurization/depressurization thang, because it spat a blot all over my paper after I had colored the focal image. Fortunately, the blot was not over the image, but I had no alternative other than coming up with a way to cover or delete the blot. I opted for paper tearing. Yahoo. Problem solved. Lesson learned. After flying, open your markers away from your project.

Thanks for visiting today!

Yee-haw!

Here's a card using another image from the new Bombshell Digital stamp release!



I colored the image and background with Copic markers. The horse's hooves are covered with a layer of Glaze pen for dimension and shine.

Both patterned papers are from the late, lamented Flair Designs. The leather-look paper is also from a company that no longer is in the paper-crafting business, FiberMark. :( (great big sad face).

The sentiment is computer generated and uses two fonts, one of them aptly called "Giddy Up".

Thanks for visiting!

Yahoo! New Bombshell Digital Stamp Release!

Howdy! There's a new western-themed Bombshell digital stamp release that will be available very soon. Horses, cowboys, cowgirls, and background scenery will let you create some amazing projects. Better yet is that the new digi stamps play well with many of the older rubber stamp sets like Retro Cowgirl!

Talking about projects, be sure to check the new Bombshell Stamps Blog to see what the other Bombshell Girls created with the new stamps.

Here's one of mine that I had submitted to a recent pub call, but it wasn't picked up, so I can share it with you today.


The card uses one of the new images, plus the small horseshoe from the Love & Luck set. The patterned papers are by Cosmo Cricket and Graphic 45.

I brought some of the new digi images with me on my recent vacation and colored them while enjoying balmy breezes sitting pool side under the palms. I'm in the process of finishing the cards, so check back later today and this weekend to see them!

Thanks for visiting today!

Thursday, November 18, 2010

I'm a Guest Blogger!

Today I'm "Guest Blogging" for the talented Tiffany, who is in the process of moving cross-country again! We really do need to support our military families who sacrifice so much to serve our country.

Not only is Tiffany seriously talented, she's exceedingly generous as well. She's going to give away a $100 gift certificate to Two Peas in a Bucket, plus some other gifts too. Here's the link so you can read about these wonderful offers!

Anyway, here's my Thanksgiving card.


The card features the adorable penguins from the Gobble It Up set by The Cat's Pajamas. The penguins, domed cloche, pie, and sentiment are from that set. The bread basket is from the Kitchen Classics set by Crafty Secrets.

The entire scene was stamped in Memento ink, then colored with Copic markers. The cloche, turkey, penguin bills, and penguin feet were coated with a layer of embossing powder to add dimension and shine. There was a whole lotta masking involved to get that turkey on the table and to add the sponged background! I also used the long rectangle Nestabilities from Spellbinders to both cut and mask the image. All of the homey patterned paper is from the Domestic Goddess pad by Graphic 45. Love! As usual, I sponged Distress Ink (Old Paper, Antique Linen, Barn Door, and Faded Jeans) to the edges of the patterned paper. The sentiment was stamped on a QuicKutz die cut tag and enhanced with a whole mess of pearls!

Thanks for visiting today!

Thursday, November 11, 2010

On Vacation!

Sunny and warm with balmy breezes. Alas no cabana boys! ;)

I do have stamping stuff with me, but no camera.

See you all next week!

Thursday, November 4, 2010

It's Third Coast Thursday!



The cat is called Feed Me and I sure hope that he's not planning on eating the fairy, which is called Butterfly Ride. Both stamps are by Third Coast Stamps.

They were stamped with Memento ink on white cardsotck and colored with Copic markers. The sky and the grass were created with palette chalk and chalk pencils. "Hello" is an Odd Bird Planet stamp.. The patterned papers are by Fancy Pants.

Thanks for visiting!

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

A Pre-Empted Card!

My Technique Tuesday Tuesday card was postponed by The Day of the Dead! However, I did start to make it on Tuesday and finished it Wednesday evening after the SCS Sketch of the Week (#305) was posted.

Here it is!


The flowers, vase, and sentiment are from the Long Stemmed Sentiment set by Technique Tuesday. It's a useful set. I especially like that the vase looks okay either way. I stamped on my dwindling supply of Prism white cardstock, which is slightly textured. I used my new Derwent Inktense pencils to color the image and am moderately pleased with the way it came out. I have a feeling that these new pencils will see a lot of use.

Thanks for visiting today.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Day of the Dead

It's The Day of the Dead (click to find out more about the holiday), so I decided to break out my Señora Muerte set by Bombshell Stamps and create a card.



La Señora was colored with Copic markers. The patterned papers are from the Boxer 6x6 pad by Basic Grey. I used two sets of Nestabilities and a Spellbinders border die, plus Martha's Spider Web Around-the-Page punch set.

Thanks for visiting today!

Monday, November 1, 2010

Bombshell's Nov. Sketch + Happy Birthday Shannon!!!

Happy Birthday Shannon! Shannon is the Bombshell Stamps Queen!!! She's a terrific person, a great boss, and a good friend! So, I made her a card using November '10's sketch!!!

Here's the sketch!



Here's her card!


Her card (which I will mail to her eventually) uses Bombshell's Man's Ruin set with the new and fabulous Banner Sayings set. I know those banners are going to be seeing a LOT of ink!!!

The image was colored with Copic markers. I added several layers of embossing powder over the glass and the small glass. I tilted the card so that the embossed glass would be visible in the photo. Some glittery sparkle was added to the small martini glass with a Sakura marker. The sentiment was shaded with a bit of Copic marker and then cut out.

Feel free to use your Bombshell Stamps and the sketch to create some projects. We'd love if you'd share them over at the Bombshell Forum or at Bombshell Stamps' new blog!

Thanks for visiting today!

Sunday, October 31, 2010

Bwa ha ha! One more Halloween card!

Gosh! I love the imagery of Halloween! So much so that I can't seem to stop collecting witch, spider web, black cat, and other spooky images. I also can't seem to stop making Halloween cards!

Here it is!


This one uses Third Coast's Spider Witch, which is a companion to Skull Witch. They are sold separately or as a set. I couldn't choose, so I got both. :D It also uses the Spider Web Corner from Bombshell's Dead Necessities set, the cauldron from the Holiday Accessory set, and an empty banner from the new and fabulous Banner Sayings set.
The witch (comes with that fierce cat), cat, and cauldron were colored with Copic markers. I highlighted the wand and the cauldron's contents with glitter pens. The patterned papers are from the Eerie Collection by Basic Grey. The glittery spider web ribbon came from Michael's. The sentiment in the banner was made with Doodlebug rub-ons. The image and the sentiment are both popped up on dimensionals.

I had to take a photo in the evening, so the flash went off, which sort of killed the shading and glitter. :(

Thanks for visiting!

Twofer: TCPTuesday #132 + a SCS Sketch Challenge!

Happy Halloween again!

The challenge was to use red, pink, and orange. For some reason, the color challenge and Halloween made me think of Wendy, the Good Little Witch from the Casper, the Friendly Ghost cartoons from my childhood. I used SCS's most recent sketch, too.

Here's the card!


So I got out The Cat's Pajamas' Fright Night set and made this card. I inked the hat, shoes, and dress with red Memento ink; the face, hands, and broom with gray Memento ink, and stamped the witch image (Dewdrops are perfect for inking parts of the stamp!). I inked the cauldron with pink Memento ink and stamped that. I used grey Memento ink for the steam curls and for the ghost. I outlined all the images (with my not-so steady hand) with a Micron pen. I colored the scene with Copic markers, added a Spica pen glittery bow tie to the ghost, then added glitter to the steam from the cauldron.

Thanks for visiting again today!

Happy Halloween!



The stamp is one from a unmounted set by The Enchanted Gallery. It was stamped with Memento inks and colored with Copic markers and glitter pen was added to her wingls. It was masked, then Distress inks were sponged on to create the background. The patterned papers are by Basic Grey (sky) and Graphic 45 (pumpkins). The sentiment is from the incredibly useful Mini Sentiment sheet by Purple Onion Designs.

Thanks for visiting!

Friday, October 29, 2010

That's one mellow skeleton!

I guess he likes to recline, rather than rattle his bones!



I computer generated the "Happy" and the "Halloween" sentiments. I stamped the skeleton from the Calaveras Fiesta set so that he was lying atop "Halloween". I drew a box around "Happy" and a stick connecting the "Happy" box (*snicker*) to the skeleton's hand. Copic markers were used to color the sentiments and the skeleton. The skeleton was coated with a layer of Glossy Accents. His sign and "Halloween" were coated with a layer of Crackle Accents. I actually let the glue dry overnight without touching it, which lead to a good result! Hallelujah.

The patterned paper is from the Basic Grey's Eerie 6x6 pad. The photo corners came from the 12x12 collection. The text paper is by Making Memories. I used a Martha Stewart/EK Success border punch and ribbon to finish off the card.

Thanks for visiting today!

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Ticket to Ride on Third Coast Thursday!

It's Third Coast Thursday on ye olde blog!

Here it is!


Plus, here's a close-up!


I cut a circle of white cardstock and stamped Third Coast's Witch's Flight Large (CO-180-O). I colored the witch using my Copic markers, accented those divine curved heels, the tassels of her scarf, and part of her broom with green Spica markers because "a project just doesn't sing if it doesn't have some bling" (Go ahead and quote me. You know you want to). I then heat set a few layers of clear embossing powder to her boots and hat (though not the ribbon around it) to add some leathery shine and dimension.

The witch was then masked and the circle was sprayed with three colors Glimmer Mist, which I'm now using, thanks to that helpful hint about dropping beads into the bottle to help mix the glimmery powder with the liquid. I heat set each layer before adding the next color. The layers were white, gold, then an orangey-yellow. The end result is a shimmery textured-looking moon. I included a close-up of the image so that the dimensional shine of the embossing on her boots and hat and the cool pocked shimmer of the moon might be more visible. Sadly, shimmery/dimensional stuff is hard to photograph with my mad skillz.

Then I wracked my brains for a suitable sentiment and came up with "Ticket to Ride". I die-cut the ticket with the Alterations ticket strip, stamped it with T!m's Stampers Anonymous ticket using lavender Distress Ink, stamped "10/31" on it using a generic office supply date stamp, edged the ticket with a darker purple Distress Ink, and used rub-ons for the sentiment.

The patterned paper and the border strip are from the Eerie collection by Basic Grey.

If you read all this, pat yourself on the back!

Thanks for visiting!

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Bombshell Stamps' Hump Day Hop!

It's the last Wednesday of the month, which means it's time for the Hump Day Hop. Hip. Hip. Hooray!!!

There's also exciting news! Bombshell Stamps stellar Design Team has started a blog, which has been organized by the fabulous Katie!

Anyways, today's hop will start at the blog and then hop along as usual. Kas, our talented Bombshell Hump Day Hop Captain, set the hop's theme of Halloween, Mam. Just Halloween. Our projects have to have either Halloween or Day of the Dead as the subject.

Here's mine:


I used both skeletons, the banner, and the pom-pom trim from the Calaveras Fiesta set. I added the Black Widow spider and the spider web from the Tattoo Backgrounds set and a webby corner from the Dead Necessities set.

The skeletons and banner were colored with Copic markers. The skeletons were cut out, coated with a layer of VersaMark, and heat embossed with several layers of clear embossing powder. The Black Widow spider was heat embossed with black embossing powder to add some creepy dimension.

The patterned paper is by Cosmo Cricket.


Now that you've seen my card, hop along to the next person. Be sure to leave a comment at each stop in the hop to better your chances of winning a fabulous prize!

Here's the list!
Bombshell Stamps Blog
Alaine
Alison
Cheryl
Kelli
AnitaMarie
Katie
Meredith
MaryAnn
Kapree
Kathi
Kas

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Technique Tuesday Tuesday!

It's Tuesday, which means it's time for me to post a card using my Technique Tuesday stamps. This one was created for the TTSCS7 Borderlicious Challenge over at Technique Tuesday's Splitcoast forum.



The challenge was to create a project using a border, so I decided to make my own border using a non-border stamp. I used the square from the Flea Market Finds set. I stamped it on its point repeatedly, creating a border. I also used the Hanging by a Thread and the Aviary sets.

The leaves and birds were colored with Copic markers. The sky paper is by Cosmo Cricket. The other patterned paper is by Basic Grey. The sparkly stickers (top left hand corner, on the sentiment, and in the center of the squares) are by Stampendous.

This was meant to be a Halloween card, but it took a left turn. :D I do like how the border came out, so I'll do that again. I'm not thrilled with the rest of the card, but done is good and "Thank You" cards are always useful.

BTW, the sentiment is by the late-lamented Odd Bird Planet. :(

Thanks for visiting today!

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Creeptastic Challenge!

Here's my entry to the "Arachnophobia" challenge over at the Smeared and Smudged forum, which is a fun place to share your vintage, goth, edgy, and darker artwork.



Personally, I love spider webs and like most spiders, except the big hairy kind. Those sort of creep me out. The black widow spider's red hourglass makes her truly creeptastic.

The chandelier is from Queen Kat Designs and was part of a kit that was a gift from my talented friend, Danielle.

The spider web and the black widow are from the Tattoo Backgrounds set
by Bombshell Stamps, who also made the spider-webby photo corners stamps which are part of the Dead Necessities set. I added a layer of Glaze pen to the talented spider on the left, who spun the web that ensnares the glittery sentiment.

The patterned paper is by 7 Gypsies. White core cardstock was stamped with spiderwebs and the spider. "Creeptastic" is made from glittered stickers and the spider webby "Halloween" are also stickers, which were colored with Copics to match the background. Both sets of stickers are from Making Memories. The cardstock's edges were tattered to add another touch of creepiness.

In case you were wondering, the skull place-card holder came from Michael's. It was originally silvery, but I sanded off most of the silver, added some Distress Ink, and googly eyes. :D

Thanks for visiting today.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

It's Third Coast Thursday!

Greetings! It's Third Coast Thursday at my blog. I decided to use SCS's Sketch 303 today to create a wicked hot card for Halloween!

Here it is!


Meet Devilish Daphne by Third Coast Stamps. She's always feeling a bit wicked and sure is hot! I colored her with my Copic markers and added a bit of bling to her lips, horns, and pitchfork.

The flames on the horizontal yellow strip and on the sentiment were stamped using Distress inks. They are from the Tiki Party set by Bombshell Stamps. The long flames on the vertical yellow strip are from the Skin Deep set by Technique Tuesday that has sadly been retired.

The sentiment was computer generated using a font called Devilette. I'm fairly certain it came from FontDiner.com or maybe you can find it using the free font generator at Bombshell Stamps forum (There are some seriously fun ones there).

I think that's it for now.

Thanks for visiting!

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

It's Technique Tuesday Tuesday!

It's Technique Tuesday Tuesday, so I decided to try my hand at the "Wrinkle Free Distress" technique. It was my first time trying this technique and I had fun!



I swiped Broken China, Concord Grape, Spiced Marmalade, and Worn Lipstick Distress inks onto my craft sheet. Then I misted the ink with water until it beaded. I placed a piece of white cardstock face down in the ink puddles and smooshed it down. Then I dried the cardstock with my heat gun. I repeated this several times until I was moderately happy with the result. I wanted the ink to look blotchier, so I spritzed it with water.

Then I had a "Eureeka" moment. I asked myself what would happen if I used pearl Glimmer Mist? I had experienced mixed results using Glimmer Mist, but I read that you got a better mixing and spraying experience if you dropped a bead into the bottle. The bead would help agitate the mica and the mica would mix better. It worked! The spraying went better and I ended up with a nice splotchier and shimmery multi-colored background.

I used the Va Va Bloom set by Technique Tuesday and stamped the flower, stem, and leaves. Then I decided to add the sentiments running vertically on either side.

I knew that I had a scrap of Club Scrap paper that would work wonderfully with the long tall format of the card. I matted the shimmery stamped piece on black cardstock, then onto the Club Scrap scrap. It needed a horizontal element to break the vertical lines a bit, so after scrounging around, looking for a piece of solid black ribbon, I had to settle for some translucent stuff. Oh well.

So, all in all, I had fun with this technique and will definitely do it again.

Thanks for visiting today!

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Bombshell Gift Bag & Notepad

Hi all,
I had another crafting mishap on Friday. I finished the cover for the Notepad and went to spray it with Super Seal® to seal and protect it. All the red from the rose ran! That hadn't happened to me before with that spray, so I was seriously bummed. I think because I hadn't used the spray in a while, the solvent part of the spray got concentrated in the initial burst, causing the Copic marker to run. Whatever happened, I had to re-do it because I'm a Virgo.

This gift bag and notepad set are part of a belated gift for my daughter's friend, Kris. Kris drove for several years before my daughter and drove her all over. When my daughter was learning to parallel park, I found myself at my wits' end, so we called Kris, who drove to meet us (after my daughter scraped a fence with my back bumper in the parking lot of a church). She set the cones and patiently taught my daughter to parallel park, do the "K" turn properly (which was NOT the way I had been having her do it), back up in a straight line. She was most instrumental in saving my sanity while aiding my daughter to pass her road test first time out!

Anyways, the card that will house the gas card (the gift) is below. This notepad and the card will go in the gift bag.

Gift Bag with Note Pad:



Gift Bag (close-up):


Note Pad (close-up):


The "K" on the gift bag is from a set of Chip Chatter chipboard letters that I've had for awhile. I inked it with Distress Ink, then coated it with a layer of clear Crackle Paint, and left it to dry overnight. When it was dry, I inked it with three colors of Distress Ink which settled into the cracks. Nifty!

The stamps used on the bag and the notepad are from Bombshell Stamps' Man's Ruin (skull with rose), Dead Necessities (corner flourish and long flourish), and Rose's Portrait (small rose) sets. I also used the Classic Tattoo Font.

The images were all stamped onto cream colored cardstock and colored with Copic markers. Distress Inks were used to age and edge the pieces.

I hope that Kris likes her notepad, card, and gift bag (which really DO match each other in real life!

Thanks for visiting today!

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Third Coast Thursday!

It's Third Coast Thursday and I'm a bit late since I messed up my first version of this card. I got it colored all nice and messed up by dropping an ink pad ink-side down on it. Isn't it always the way? *huge sigh*

Here's the new improved version:


Since it's getting cooler and the leaves are really beginning to change, Halloween isn't all that far away! I do love Halloween and not just because of the candy. I love the imagery of witches, cauldrons, skulls, bats, black cats and all of that, which is well represented in my stamp and paper collection. In fact, I use those images all year around!

Anyways, this card uses Third Coast's Skull Witch with Shadowcat Walking. The witch was colored with Copic markers and is a lovely witchy green (which you can't see because my photo is not great. Silly rain). Her hair is auburn and her outfit is lavender. The skulls on her hat, shoes, and her belt were colored with Copics then heat embossed to give them some dimension and shine.

(An aside: I wish I were as ripped as the Skull Witch!)

The patterned papers are by Making Memories (text) and Basic Grey. The sentiment is from a great and useful sentiment set by Purple Onion Designs. There are Kaiser Craft lavender gemstones on the top left and bottom right corners because a project just can't sing if it don't got the bling! *snort*

Thanks for visiting today.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Tuesday's Technique Tuesday card!

This week's card was created for the current challenge over on Technique Tuesday's SplitCoast forum. However, being a me of little brain, I mis-read the challenge, which was to use word stamps to create a card. Instead, I used an image stamp to create a word, though I do have a ton of words on the card, courtesy of the patterned paper.

Here it is!


I had already stamped, heat-embossed, punched, and used my Copics to color the peace sign ( Peace stamp by Technique Tuesday). I had set the pease sign aside for the proverbial "rainy day". When I saw the challenge, this idea popped into my head. I thought I had a chipboard alpha that was the right size and font, but alas, I was delusional. Fortunately, I had a QuicKutz alphabet that was the right size, though not the optimal font. I cut the letters from shimmery Bazzill Bling, then popped 'em onto very old 7 Gypsies papers from my stash. The letters sort of faded into the background, so I outlined 'em. I could prattle on some more, but I've got to hop to it.

Thanks for visiting!

Monday, October 11, 2010

One card--three challenges!!!

Woo-hoo! I hit the trifecta of challenges! I'm sooo efficient. Bwa ha ha.

This card meets The Cat's Pajamas' Tuesday Challenges #128 (to use PJ the bear), #129 (a sketch), and the "Think Pink" Blog Hop Challenge!



PJ, from TCP's A Cuppa set, was colored with pink Copics to match the teacup paper (from my scrap bin) and the Basic Grey paper. I actually paper pieced, which is a shocker since I'm notoriously deficient in my cutting skills -- I actually failed "Scissors" in Kindergarten 500 years ago.

Thanks for visiting my blog!

Thursday, October 7, 2010

It's Third Coast Thursday!

I used Paloma Mini from Third Coast Rubber Stamps on two different projects and am sharing both today. I do need to get her some other people and scenery too, though I'll probably have to wait til holiday time.

Here's my ATC:


She was stamped, colored, then masked. I stamped part of a really old Club Scrap stamp (from the Renaissance kit), using Pumice Stone Distress Ink. I then used green, blue, and pink Distress Inks to color in the background.

The sentiment was computer generated, cut, and colored with the same Distress Inks. The sentiment and the ATC were edged with gold glitter pen.

Stampbord Tile:


She was stamped on the tile, which measures 1.25" x 2.5". I used Prismacolor pencils and Citrus paint thinner to color her. The image was masked and overstamped with an alphabet text stamp using Concord Grape Distress Ink and a harlequin stamp using Violet Distress Ink. I used a crackle pattern stamp with Lavender Distress ink over the harlequin pattern. When all the ink was dry, I lifted the mask, added a gold line between the harlequin and text patterns, edged, then smudged the tile with a gold Krylon leafing pen. Then I got my scratching and gauging tools and scratched up the surface of the tile. When I was happy with it, the tile was embossed with three layers of clear embossing powder.

Thanks for visiting today!

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Tuesday's Technique Tuesday card

I created this one for a WCMD challenge over at the Technique Tuesday's SCS forum. The challenge was to use markers. Ha! So not a challenge! These days a challenge for me would be to use any other medium!

Anyways, here's a bright and cheerful card using Technique Tuesday's My Little Poppy Shoppe set that I got at the CK Convention back in the summer.



The flower, stem, and leaves were stamped with Memento inks and colored with Copic markers. The patterned papers are from the Origins 6x6 pad by Basic Grey. I love this collection! The little sentiment is from the Mixed Messages set by Paper Trey Ink, which is fabulously useful with small sets and great fonts. I'm pleased to say that I used three (3) buttons, which leaves a million, gazillion, trillion in my four repurposed jumbo-sized Jif peanut butter-turned-into-button jars.

The design took one of those famous left turns, but I'm kind of pleased with the way the card came out. Oh and the poppy is yellow because that's the only color I've ever seen irl. I must google "Poppy Images" to see what other colors they can be.

Prattle, prattle. Oy. Sorry.

Thanks for visiting today!

Monday, October 4, 2010

Win BIG with Bombshell Stamps' October Sketch Challenge!

Make a card with this sketch (by yours truly)...


...and you can win these prizes.

If you use the sketch with Bombshell Stamps and share your project at Bombshell's Forum in the Sketch Challenge area, you'll have a chance to win these two sets:


If you use the sketch with any stamps (by any company) and post it at Rubber Stamp Chat, you'll have a chance to win:


Here's my take on the sketch!


Rose's Portrait was stamped on some Prism cardstock that I found in my stash. I colored the image with Copic markers, which blended very nicely on that cardstock, which is no longer available. *sad face* Her earring was colored with Copics, accented with a glitter Spica pen, then overlaid with a Sakura Glaze pen to add a bit of dimension. The sentiment is from the wonderful new Banner Sayings set, which arrived today, just in time to be used for this card! I didn't even mount the rubber yet! I just inked it, put the patterned paper over the unmounted sheet, shaded the sentiment banner, and cut it out!

The patterned paper is seriously old paper from Keeping Memories Alive, which was bought in quantity and hoarded!!! It survived several patterned paper purges and I'm so glad!!!

I hope you use the sketch and take advantage of this fabulous chance to win BIG!!!

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Third Coast Thursday!



I guess I'm in a philosophical mood. Here's a card using Butterfly Ride by Third Coast Rubber Stamps. The stamp comes in more than one size. I got both because I love the image!

The image was colored with Copic markers, which actually match the background papers, which are by My Mind's Eye (mat layer) and Graphic 45 (background layer). I diecut the image, then masked it, kept it in the Nestabilities Label 11 die, and sponged Distress Ink over the image to be matchy-matchy with the background paper.

The sentiment is by Wordsworth/Rubber Soul and was punched out with the Word Window punch, then layered onto another Nestabilities die cut, and a Cuddlebug diecut strip.

Thanks for visiting today!

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Bombshell Stamps' Hump Day Hop!

Yes! It's the last Wednesday of the month, which means it's time to hop with the Bombshells! Yahoo!

Kas, our able Bombshell Hop Captain, set this month's theme, which is Back to School, Time For Geography!

I hope you got here from Kas's blog!

Here's my project:


This will ultimately end up being a wall-hanging, though I originally meant it to be a long tall card using this month's sketch (see post below), tilted 90°. Like my last project, this one also took a left turn at Albuquerque, though it was a more a veer than a turn.

The cadillac from Bombshell's Speed Shop set was stamped onto white cardstock and colored with Copic markers. I recently rediscovered the fun that is QuicKutz and used a QuicKutz embossing folder to emboss the quote on the right. I masked and used Distress Ink to create the sky and the roadway. Then I used Black Distress ink to make the quote pop out a bit more. The interstate sign is a QuicKutz die cut, colored with Copics, with QuicKutz die cut letters on it. The map is an actual map (of Maine), which was cut to size and sponged with Distress ink.

Once I decided I wanted to hang this in my craft room, I added a few more mat layers to it.

Now that you've seen my take on the theme, hop along to Anita Marie's blog.

Remember that each comment you make along the blog hop will earn one more chance for you to win this month's fabulous prize!

BTW, if you've gotten lost on the hop, here's the complete list.

Hump Day Hopper List:
Kas
Kathi
AnitaMarie
Katie
MaryG
Cheryl
Kelli
Meredith
Alaine
Alison
WildRose

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Bombshell Sketch Challenge Card

I apparently forgot to post my sketch for Bombshell Stamps on my blog this month. Bad, bad, forgetful me.

If you use the sketch to create a project using Bombshell Stamps and post it in the sketch area of Bombshell's forum, you get a chance to win a terrific prize.

Feel free to flip it, flop it, and make it your own. Just have fun with it! You have until September 30th, so there is still a tiny bit of time!

Here's the sketch.


Here's my take on the sketch:


My plan was to create a card to fit into a business sized envelope. Then my mad mad math skillz messed up that plan. The card is now longer than the envelope. You'll also notice that the card only bears a slight resemblance to the sketch. That's because my so-called creative process took a left turn at Albuquerque. Oh well.

OK. The card uses Bombshell's Tiki Party as the focal image. I used two of the Tikis and stacked 'em, colored 'em, and cut 'em out. I diecut the flame from yellow cardstock, then stamped the flame from the same set to make the flame flamier. Yes. I just typed "flamier", which is so not a word.

The hibiscus motif from Bombshell Pattern set was stamped repeatedly using pink and orange Distress Inks to create the background pattern.

I masked the words on the banner stamp from the Tattoo Backgrounds set and used rub-ons to add the sentiment.

BTW, the fabulous new Banner Sayings set includes sentiments in banners and some blank banners too. I can't wait to get my grubby paws on them along with the other three new sets (featuring butterflies and Sacred Hearts).

Thanks for visiting today. Come back tomorrow for the Bombshell Hump Day Hop!!!