A Time for Remembering

Thanksgiving, Chanukah, and Christmas were always occasions for my family to get together to enjoy each others' company and enjoy a good meal. There was always a feeling of peace, contentment, and love that pervaded these holidays.

Now my father and mother-in-law are gone, but their memories live on within our hearts. We still get together to enjoy our family's holiday traditions, though of course, we note the missing places at the dinner table.

Hence, this project.

SCACD's Zen Sugar Skull, one of two sugar skulls and sentiment included in the Skellies in the Closet collection, was stamped using Tuxedo Black Memento ink onto Neenah cardstock and colored with Copic markers. The little lantern, part of the Zen Sugar Skull, was stamped in the eye sockets with the assistance of a Stamp-a-ma-jig stamp positioner. Some Gelly Roll Stardust Pure Glitter pen was added here and there to add some glittery bits. The Zen Sugar Skull was fussy cut and edges with a black pen to get rid of those unsightly white edges.

The Key Corner die, one of two dies in SCACD's Fancy Flower and Key Corner die set, was used to cut black cardstock. I cut a 4" x 4" piece of patterned paper from the very old and hoarded Kioshi 6x6 pad by Basic Grey, edged it with Black Soot Distress ink, then added to the four corners. The Zen Sugar Skull was then adhered atop this piece.

The sentiment, which is included Skellies in the Closet collection was stamped and colored with Copic markers, then laid atop the Tessatina Border die cut by Memory Box.

By the way, you should go check out the sales at SCACD!  There are some fabulous bargains and I know you love bargains!

Thanks for visiting today!

I shall enter this card in the following challenges:
• Simon Says Stamp: Anything Goes!
• Songbird Challenge #28: Die Another Day
• Use It Tuesdays #68: Anything Goes
• 365 Days - Day 329: Die Cut Dynamo

Happy Thanksgiving! A repost...

In fact, this entire post is a repost from last year since we reprised the whole two days, with one exception. Chanukah started last night, so this year the Menorah, gifts, other family get-togethers, and traditions will be added to the mix...
 
I'm an overachiever, we already did the family Thanksgiving dinner last night and will be doing Thanksgiving Dinner, the Sequel tonight.

All the purveying, prep, and what not have kept me out of my craft room, so I'm reposting an oldie (but hopefully goodie) Thanksgiving card.

Here it is. It's an accordion card with a belly band to keep it together.

Front View with Belly Band:


Accordion Card:


The card features the adorable penguins from the Gobble It Up set by The Cat's Pajamas. The penguins, domed cloche, pie, and sentiments are from that set. The wine bottle is called Pop the Cork and is also by the Cat's Pajamas. 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 that homey yellow background, which was sponged with Distress Ink.

The patterned paper is from the Origins collection by Basic Grey.

Thanks for visiting today and

Happy Thanksgiving!!! I hope your meal is delicious, the company good, and that you have someone else to clean up for you. If you're traveling, be safe.

Bombshell's November Hump Day Hop

It's the last Wednesday of the month which means it's time for Bombshell's Hump Day Hop!

This month, Alison, our lovely and talented Challenge Captain has set the theme of Water World! Here's what she had to say about it.

"I want you to incorporate water or water-loving elements into your projects this month!"You should have arrived here from http://www.cajunstampingqueen.blogspot.com/

You should have arrived here from Kelli's blog, where you likely saw something altered, creative, and amazing!

Here's my project, using Bombshell's Mermaid Anchor rubber stamp set. 

I positioned the mermaid and the two dolphin stamps on my acrylic block, inked them with Tuxedo Black Memento ink, then stamped the images onto Neenah cardstock. I colored the images with Copic markers, then added some Clear Wink of Stella glitter pen to the mermaid's tail. I also added a few layers of Clear Gelly Glaze pen to both dolphins to make them look wet and slippery! Realism is everything, don'tcha think?

The cloudy sky was created and colored with Copic markers per my tutorial that appeared last Friday on Bombshell's blog. Here's a link if you want to take a gander, or a goose, or best yet, a look!

The sea was also colored, but then I decided to use vellum to make it look as though the lower part of the mermaid and her anchor were below the water line. I tore the tops of two sheets, then layered them over the stamped and colored panel. The vellum was attached with my Tiny Attacher stapler at the bottom and with colored twine that was threaded through punched holes on either side of the mermaid.

The staples were covered with a ribbon, a die-cut (QuicKutz) with a sentiment (from justjohanna's Odd Bird Planet) stamped onto it, and some more of that twine.

My Inkssentials White Gel pen was used to add some splashy drippy marks issuing from the dolphins' fins and tails. I went a bit overboard (giggling at my bad joke) with the white pen, but once it's on, it's on for good. *sigh*

I decided to keep the design simple and just matted the card and added some QuicKutz die-cut photo corners to the top corners.

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful holiday if you're celebrating!

If you've gotten lost along the way or stopped here first...
here's the complete hop list!
Bombshell Blog
Alison
Kim
Alaine
Leslie
Glittery Katie
Kas
Stempelientje
Marnie
Kelli

Lookin' at clouds...

I've written a Fabulous Friday tutorial for Bombshell Stamps that shares how I create a cloudy sky background using Copic markers. Click on over to Bombshell's blog to check it out.

Card One

Card Two

Card Three

Card Four (channeling my inner Hippie)

All cards feature Bombshell's Butterfly Dreams rubber stamp set. This set contains nine different butterflies plus a "Butterfly Dream" sentiment.

Card Three also features Bombshell's Banner Sayings rubber stamp set, which is on sale now!

All cards use the same basic design, tweaked here and there. The patterned papers are all from very old Basic Grey 6x6 pads. I also used Nestabilities Grand Labels Four, Die-Namics Blueprints 2, and a bunch of other dies. I must say that that Thanks die from Memory Box is fabulous. It's such a perfect size. I also must say that I love, Love, LOVE the new magnetic platform from Sizzix!

Thanks for visiting today!

And now for something different!

I felt like coloring a flower since for some reason I rarely use a flower as a focal image. It's not like I don't have lots of flower stamps. I do. I just don't seem to use them very much.

SCACD's latest release contained a cool new collection called Floral Fun that contains the Baobab Trees set and the Poppy Pods set, which is a great value. Of course, you can get each set separately if you'd prefer.

I opted to use the line art version from the Poppy Pods set. I'm only familiar with red poppies in full bloom and didn't know what poppy pods look like irl. So, I did what comes naturally (not that) and did a Google image search so that my poppies would look relatively realistic.

Here's the card:

I stamped the Poppy Pod using Tuxedo Black Memento ink onto off-white Neenah cardstock, then colored the image with Copic markers (YG91, 93, 95, 97 and Y21, 23, 32). I outlined the images with E70. The image panel was die cut with a Nestabilities die. The panel stayed in the die and Pumice Stone Distress ink was sponged over the die and around the edges.

The patterned papers are from the Reflections 6x6 pad by Echo Park. Some of the edges were distressed using a Tonic distressing tool and a pair of scissors. The distressed edges were sponged with Scattered Straw Distress ink.

Lace from my stash was adhered using my beloved Tiny Attacher. Jute was added to it because the card wanted another touch of yellow and another texture. I listened to it because it was right.

Both the nameplate and Thanks dies are by Memory Box. The nameplate was cut first, then the Thanks sentiment was cut from the nameplate and on contrasting paper. They were layered together.

The card was finished with three dragonflies that were punched from a sheet from the Reflections 6x6 pad by Echo Park.

Thanks for visiting today.

I shall enter this card in the following challenges:
• Cards in Envy: Punch It Challenge
• Get Inky Challenge #17: Thanks or Thanksgiving
• Lady Anne's Challenges: More than One Layer
• Pile It On Challenge #46: With Thanks
• Sentimental Sundays: Giving Thanks

Yikes. Difficult challenge!

I've been remiss since I returned from vacation and didn't get to a few of Stampotique Designers Challenges, so I decided to remedy that situation. But boy howdy did I choose a tough one! Stampotique Designers Challenge #125 is to create a One Layer Card. Gosh. That was seriously hard for me -- almost as hard as creating something elegant. I don't do elegant. And apparently I'm one-layer impaired as well.

The problem is that I've become the total Copic ho user and Copics tend to bleed through the back of the cardstock, which makes them very bad for one layer cards, so I had to color using an alternate coloring medium. Back in the day, pre-Copic, I used to use watercolor pencils, chalk pencils, and colored pencils. But I'm woefully out of practice using most of 'em.

But I was a good doobie (not the illegal kind) and got out my Prismacolor pencils and went for it.

Here it is:

I stamped Stampotique's Nerd Cat using Jet Black Archival ink onto Strathmore 140 lb. Mixed Media cardstock then colored with my Prismacolor pencils. I went to blend with Goo-Gone and discovered that the !@#$^ ink smeared. Some not-so-nice words  issued from my lips. Shocking. Totally shocking. Um not. I swear like a sailor. It's disgraceful.

But I digress. Quél surprise! So I restamped Stampotique's Nerd Cat using Jet Black Archival ink onto a new piece of Strathmore 140 lb. Mixed Media cardstock and colored it yet again with Prismacolor pencils. This time, I just didn't blend with anything other than other pencils. It came out okay, but not terrific. Nerd Cat was coated with a layer of Matte Multi-Medium that would (later) act as a resist/mask.

I've previously decided that Nerd Cat is a chemist. Chemists love to scribble their weird hieroglyphics onto whatever is handy like a table cloth or paper napkins, but this time Nerd Cat is a Chemistry Professor and is teaching a class. Therefore, he had to have a blackboard. Blackboards haven't been black in ages. They were green when last I checked. These days, they probably are obsolete, replaced with some gizmo. However, my Nerd Cat professor is a throwback, so he needed a green blackboard. I drew one in, then painted it green with Hyde Park Fresco Finish paint by Paper Artsy, then heat set the paint because I was impatient and wanted it dry pronto. I also didn't want to risk the flatness on the reverse of the card front. I used my Prismacolor pencils to add the wood around the green blackboard, then stamped some chemical hieroglyphics from The Chemist set (Stamper's Anonymous) that I won! (yeehaw) from the Tim Holtz. I used white ink to make it look chalky. There was some smearage, but perfection is overrated, so I let it ride.

The green blackboard was masked and Squeezed Lemonade Distress ink was sponged over the entire card front. The excess ink was carefully wiped off of Nerd Cat using a q-tip. Fired Brick and Salty Ocean Distress inks were sponged over the Measured Layered stencil and more Squeezed Lemonade Distress ink was sponged over the Dot Fade Layered stencil. BTW, all Layered stencils are on sale right now. And they rock, so you need them.

The last step was to add several layers of Clear Gelly Glaze pen to both the frames and lenses of the eyeglasses as well as the buttons to add dimension and shine. 

I decided not to add a sentiment 'cause I don't know how I will use the card and who will receive it for what occasion. Hence, when I get to that point, I will add one, most likely to the green blackboard.

Thanks for visiting today!

I shall enter this card in the following challenges.
• Stampotique Designers Challenge #125: One Layer 
• Clean and Simple Sunday Challenge #21: One Layer Wonder
• Corrosive Challenge #187: Fur or Feathers 
• Cards Galore November Challenge: Animals

Santa's Spy & Helper

Have you ever wondered how Santa was able to know who was naughty or nice 24 hours a day for 365 days a year?

I've solved that problem. He has spies, lots and lots of them. They're in your house. They're in your garden. They're everywhere!

Here is one of Santa's little sneaky spy helpers!

 Eye on the Prize, one of the new release stamps from SCACD's Mechanicals Set #2, was stamped with Black Tuxedo Memento ink onto Neenah cardstock and colored with Copic markers. Diamond Glaze Dimensional Adhesive was added to his eye, to the lens of his eyepiece, and to the lens of his telescope. This did not hurt him, but if it did hurt, who cares? He's a spy, so he deserves it!

The patterned papers are from the Traditions and Joyous 6x6 pads by Authentique. The gear corners are gold metallic cardstock that was cut with an Alterations Gears die, quartered, and added to the corners. The sentiment was cut from gold cardstock with the old Snow Angels QuicKutz die set. 

Thanks for visiting today!

I shall enter this card in the following challenges:
• Crimbo Crackers Challenge #54: Christmas Words
• Crafting By Designs: Anything Goes with a Twist of Christmas
• Vintage Crafting Time Challenge #14: Traditional Christmas
• Cards for Men Challenge #23: Merry Christmas
• Oozak Challenges #26: Holidays and Anything Goes

Bombshell's Muse Monday!

Bombshell's Design Team, aka the Bombshell Girls, are showcasing the Indian Princess set on the Bombshell Blog every Monday throughout November! This set is available in both rubber and digital formats! Better yet, the rubber set is on sale this month! Click on over to the blog every Monday to see and be inspired by new artwork featuring this versatile set.

Here's my card for November 2013's Muse Monday!

The Indian Princess with Headress from the Indian Princess set was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink onto Neenah cardstock and colored with Copic markers. When I was done, the image was outlined with a W0 marker and some chalk pencils were used to add some shading. Clear Wink of Stella glitter pen was added to the crystals on her headdress and earrings to make 'em sparkly.

The Dream Catcher from the Indian Princess set was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink onto Neenah cradstock, colored with Copic markers, fussy cut, then edged with a black Big Brush pen.

The layered patterned papers are from the Marrakesh 6x6 pad by Basic Grey. It's an older pad, but I still love it. Fishtail dies by Die-Namics were used to die cut some of the papers, layered, and the Dream Catcher was adhered atop the fishtails. I used a very old 4x4 die by QuicKutz to die-cut some thin chipboard. The arrow was a bit too long, so I cut it down and added some solid blue paper from the Marrakesh pad to hide the seam between the arrow head and shaft.

It's a sunny cool day in New Jersey, so there are some pretty harsh shadows on my card from the Dream Catcher. Sorry 'bout that!

Thanks for visiting today!

Moxie Fab Thanks Blog Hop

 The crafting world had some sad news the other day. Moxie Fab World's originator, Cath Edvaldson, has decided that it's time for her to step away from Moxie Fab World and begin a new adventure. Since Cath has been such a positive force in the industry, people decided to hold a huge blog hop in her honor. Even though I was never "Moxie Fab" and haven't had work published by Paper Crafts in ages, I had exchanged emails with Cath and met her a few times at CHA. I found her to be as delightful in person as I had in email, so I decided to participate in the blog hop.

So on with the hop! You should have come here from Katrina Hunt's blog.

Here's my card.

I used Stampotique's Moon Girl.  As I've done in the past with this stamp, I colored the rubber with Distress markers, huffed on the stamp, then stamped the image onto Neenah cardstock. Copic markers were used to deepen the colors on her hair and dress and to add color to her face and wings. When I was done coloring her, I added Clear Wink of Stella glitter pen to her wings because fairies have to have glittery wings. I die-cut the image panel using a Memory Box Snow Globe die, then traced previously die-cut Eclipse tape Clouds (Memory Box) using a Copic marker. The Eclipse tape was lifted and the clouds were further detailed with additional Copic markers. Blue sky was added using a custom-blended blue Copic marker.

The base of the Snow Globe was die-cut from wood patterned paper from the Wildflower 6x6 pad by Carta Bella. It was edged with Frayed Burlap Distress ink because I can't abide white edges.

SCACD's Ornate Hinge die was used to die-cut white cardstock and three Ornate Hinge die-cuts were layered atop a sheet of patterned paper from the Wildflower 6x6 pad. Additional papers were layered and a computer generated sentiment strip was added. Memory Box's Thanks die was used to die-cut white paper and the die-cut was layered onto the base of the Snow Globe. The assembled Snow Globe was added to the card's front. One of the two dies in SCACD's Classic Corners die set was used to die-cut white cardstock. These corners were added to the top corners to finish the card.

Thanks for stopping by today. Your next stop on the hop is Glenda Wyatt's blog!

Here's Steampunk Cat & Mouse!

Here's Steampunk Cat and Mouse, which is a digital stamp by Carmen Medlin for SCACD Digital.
I love these digis because you can resize them, flip 'em, flop 'em, and do other odd things to them. Best of all, there are lots of owls (which I love) and Steampunk-themed stamps (I adore Steampunk). And of course I love AND adore cats!!!

 Steampunk Cat and Mouse was resized using Photo Elements and printed onto Neenah cardstock with my laser printer. They were then colored with Copic markers as was the background. When I was done, I added Gold Spica Glitter (Copic) pen to the watch frame and Lipstick Spica Glitter (Copic) pen to the mouse's nose and reflection. Then I went over the entire watch, the cat's eyes, the mouse's nose, and his wheels with a Clear Gelly Roll Glaze pen. When the glaze was dry, I repeated this step a few times to make those parts even more dimensional and shiny/clear.

Patterned paper from the Steampunk Spells 6x6 pad by Graphic 45 was used for the mats and die cut. Patterned paper from Graphic 45's Steampunk Debutante 8x8 pad was used for the card front. SCACD's Alice's Clock Statement Corner die was used to cut the yellow solid paper from Steampunk Spells 6x6 pad. I used red 3D Stamp Paint by Viva Decor to paint the die-cut. This paint is shimmery and can be dimensional, though I chose to use it as a flat paint. Best of all, it's 35% off right now.

I couldn't decide on a sentiment, so I didn't use one! When I do, it'll likely go in the upper right, jutting into the white space of the scene.

Thanks for visiting today!

I shall enter this card in the following challenges:
• Divas by Design: Use a Digi
• Papertake Weekly: Anything Goes
• Twisted Tuesday: Anything Goes and a Free-for-all
• Our Creative Corner: Steampunk Tic-Tac-Toe: (I used gears - both paper and diecut), texture (glitter, glaze), and transport (the mouse has wheels)
• Cards Galore Challenges: Animals
• Emergency Crafters: Steampunk
• Feeling Crafty Challenge #22: Steampunk
• Punk You Girls Challenge #6: Angels or Demons My cats can be either angels or demons.

Bombshell's Ms. November's Challenge!

Kas Mello, Bombshell's Ms. November, has issued her challenge, "Rough Chicks, Bikes, and Leather". Not all girls are into pink and bows, some are covered in grease and have helmet hair. Motorcycles are always a good girly accessory and what biker chick doesn't love leather?

I used Bombshell Stamps' A Pirate's Life set, Biker Bombshell Digital stamp set, and the Vintage Motorcycle set to create this card.

I decided that I wanted the entire scene to be in greyscale, except for one pop of color. The Pirate Pin-Up girl was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink and just her head was colored using Copic markers, fussy cut, and put aside. I chose the outfit with the scarf from the
Biker Bombshell Digital stamp set and used Photo Elements to copy and paste two outfits which were printed onto Neenah cardstock using my laser printer.  The outfits were colored with Copic markers and then fussy cut. A Krylon Silver Leafing pen was used to add silver to the jacket's zippers and buttons. The jacket and the boots were painted with Fresco Finish Gloss Glaze (Paper Artsy), so that they would look like shiny leather.  The boots were layered over their counterparts and the rest of the Pirate-Pin-up-turned-Biker Babe was assembled. She was put aside while I worked on the scene.

The left-facing motorcycle from the Vintage Motorcycle set was stamped and colored with Copic markers. A VersaMark marker was used to color over the motorcycle, which was then heat embossed with Clear Filigree embossing powder. The same motorcycle was stamped again to the left and overlapping the first motorcycle. The embossing acted like a resist. The excess ink was wiped off using a cotton swab and this motorcycle was colored with Copic markers. I repeated the VersaMark/embossing powder process, and then stamped the motorcycle a third time, colored it with Copics, then the VersaMark marker, then heat embossed the image. I should note that I know squat all about motorcycles so the coloration of the motorcycles, especially the aqua one, is probably completely wrong. Such is life.

Pumice Stone Distress ink was sponged over the motorcycles. I pulled out my trusty Bricks stencil by The Crafter's Workshop and sponged Pumice Stone Distress ink over the stencil rather heavily to create a brick wall behind the motorcycles. I messed up with the embossing powder a bit at the base of the card, but Black Soot Distress paint came to the rescue. Gosh. I love paint!

Black cardstock was die cut with a Nestabilities die and then used to frame the motorcycle scene. This framed piece was adhered to a 5" x 7" card and the Bombshell Biker Babe was adhered as shown.

Thanks for visiting today!

Happy Birthday to the Bombshell Queen!

Shannon is the Bombshell Queen and today is her birthday!

Bombshell Girls and Pin-Ups from the current and past teams have gotten together to throw a huge surprise blog hop to celebrate Shannon's special day!

You should have gotten here from Jenn's blog, where you surely saw something wonderful.

I'm the last stop on the hop! I know that you've seen some wonderful and inspiring artwork featuring Bombshell Stamps!

Now you get to see my card for Shannon!

Here it is!

Man's Ruin was one of my first five stamp sets when I discovered Bombshell Stamps several years ago. The Party Pin-Up really appealed to me and I also loved the Skull with Rose rubber stamp. The Man's Ruin set is still one of my favorite sets and I reach for it often as it's especially good for birthday cards!

The Man's Ruin set was stamped twice with Tuxedo Black Memento ink onto Neenah cardstock and colored with Copic markers. I fussy cut the head, torso, legs, and drink of one of the images and set it aside. The bottom part, comprised of the Pin-Up's bottom and the container part of the martini glass were pressed into a VersaMark pad and heat embossed with Clear Filigree embossing powder. This step was repeated several times until it it appeared glossy. I used a VersaMark marker on the skull and repeated the above process until the skull was dimensional and shiny.

The fussy-cut head, torso, legs, and drink were adhered atop the counterparts, which resulted in the top part of the Pin-Up and her legs appearing to be outside of the martini glass. A crown from the Butterfly Queen set was stamped with Champagne Dazzle VersaMark ink and heat embossed with a glittery gold embossing powder. I had incomplete coverage, so I ran a Krylon Gold Leafing pen over the embossed skull. This worked and I ended up with a gold glittery crown, which was fussy cut, then adhered to the Party Pin-Up's head.

The stamped panel was die-cut using a Nestabilities Grand Labels Four die, kept in the die, then sponged with Weathered Wood Distress ink. 

The patterned papers are from the Perhaps (floral) and Phresh and Phunky (checked) collections by Basic Grey plus music sheet paper from Victoria Gardens 6x6 pad by Echo Park. The metallic glitter papers (gold, silver, blue, pink) are all from a glitter 6x6 pad by DCWV.

Gold glitter paper was punched with an EK Success border punch and used to mat a strip of music paper. A smaller strip of the gold glitter paper was adhered at the top of this panel. Blue glitter paper was die cut with the Delicate Chain die by Poppy Stamps/Memory Box and added to the thin strip of gold glitter paper. This matted strip of music paper was layered atop the Perhaps patterned paper. SCACD's Ornate  Hinge die was used to die-cut blue glitter paper and these were added to either side of the music strip.

The stamped, colored, and die cut was adhered to the card front.  One of the two SCACD's Classic Corner dies was used to die cut gold glitter paper. The die-cut corners were added to all four corners of the card front. Blue glitter paper was die cut with Memory Box' Party Glasses die, which cuts five tiny cocktail and/or wine glasses. Four of these glasses were added to each of the corners.

A small label was die cut from blue glitter paper and foil sentiment stickers were added. Gold Kaisercraft Rhinestones were added to finish the card front.

Inside of card:

The inside of the card is basically the same as the outside of the card, except that I used one of the two dies included in SCACD's Garden Corners set to die cut gold and pink glitter paper, then pieced the two together. A tiny star punch was used to punch blue glitter paper which was added to the corners. A large martini glass die by Die-Namics was used to die cut white/silver glitter paper. I colored the martini glass with a Prismacolor marker, then added Clear Gelly Glaze pen over it to seal it.

If you got lost along the way or just happened upon this post, the blog hop roster is below so that you can check out some fabulous schtuff!

Here's the Blog Hop Roster!
Alaine
Alison 
Katie
Kelli
Kim
Marnie
Stempelientje 
Susie
Sharon
Kas
Holley
Leslie
Alyssa
Nicole
Cheryl
Milo
Alex
Teresa
Jenn
Kathi