Meet Hoverfly!

Meet Hoverfly, one of SCACD's fun and fabulous digital stamps. If you haven't checked out SCACD's whole digital range, you really ought to do so now. There's something for everyone, ranging from fantastical images like Hoverfly to Steampunk images to just-plain-cute!

Hoverfly was resized in PhotoElements, printed onto Neenah cardstock with my laser printer, then colored with Copic markers.

I usually choose my colors based on the patterned paper I feel like using, but I colored the image first then found the perfect papers to match. I obviously was feeling a bit of spring fever as I went with bold, bright, cheerful colors! I used papers from the very old Lime Rickey 6x6 pad by Basic Grey. The base paper is a very busy pattern, which hadn't been used. I think it works with this image. I used the striped paper to add another pattern, and used solid papers to mat and ground 'em.

I used one of the two corners included in SCACD's Classic Corners set to die-cut the striped paper and layered it atop a green corner which was die-cut with a Spellbinders die set that I got for $10 at AC Moore. Gotta love those bargains!

Yellow cardstock was die-cut using an old Spellbinders die and the sentiment was created with my rapidly diminishing supply of small alphabet Doodlebug rub-ons.

The flowers were punched from the same Lime Rickey pad, molded, and then stacked. Tiny rhinestones were used to add a touch of sparkle.

Thanks for visiting today!

Cool Birds!

It's Friday, which means it's time for another new challenge at the Outlawz Alcohol Marker Group! This week we're having an "Anything Goes with the option of creating a card for Christmas and/or any winter holiday!

This challenge is sponsored by Ditzie Digi Design, who will be awarding fabulous prizes at the end of the month!

You should go visit my teammates' blogs to check out what they created for this challenge. You can find links to Carla, Dawn, and Penny's blogs down there on the right side.  You should also play along with the challenge and share your project for a chance to win a prize from Ditzie Digi Design. They will be awarding three digis for first prize, two digis for second prize, and one digi for first!

Anyway, here's my card, featuring the bird trio from the You're So Tweet set by Kraftin' Kimmie! I took this photo with my iPhone*.

The bird trio from the You're So Tweet set by Kraftin' Kimmie was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink onto Neenah cardstock and colored with Copic markers. Clear Gelly Glaze pen was added to their beaks and birdy feet. Clear Wink of Stella Glitter pen was added to the snowy part of the branch and is very glittery and icy looking irl. The cloudy sky was added with my Copic markers in my usual way.

Very old two-sided die-cut patterned paper was layered and an aperture was die-cut for the stamped image. All edges were sponged with Golden Glitz Delicata ink. The golden shimmer of this ink is remarkably wondrous. If you haven't tried it, you should. And now there's a silver version that has the same amazing shimmer.

The sentiment was stamped onto one of the sheets from that pad, die-cut, and edged with the deliciously sparkly Golden Glitz Delicata ink.

*BTW, I took the photo with my iPhone and had an adventure. I took a video of the card, my project, my lamps, my desk, then my perplexed face. The photo is almost rubbish, so if the weather is good, I'll take a better one tomorrow with my real camera. By the way, the learning curve on my new toy makes me feel like a total moronicdweebtwit. Apparently you can't teach this old dog new tricks.

Thanks for visiting today!

I shall be entering this card in the following challenges!

• Kraftin' Kimmie's Challenge Blog: Wonderful Wednesday Anything Goes

• The Craft-room Challenges: Things with Wings
• Deep Ocean Challenges: Wings
• 7 Kids College Fund Challenge Blog: Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp: Anything Goes

Feline Dotty!

Sam Read is hosting Stampotique Designers Challenge this week and has challenged everyone to use pink, turquoise, and polka dots. Here's what she has to say about her challenge!

"Polka dots are great fun as a main feature or as a delicate accent to artwork. My other love is my favourite colour combination, pink and turquoise. So for this week's challenge I'm inviting you to have fun with my favourite things: Pink, Turquoise and Polka Dots! I can't wait to see your creations, so get your rubber out and have lots of fun creating :)"

If you'd like the chance to win $30 worth of Stampotique stamps, you should play along. Visit Stampotique Designers Challenge blog and be sure to read the rules, so that you'll have the chance to win a great prize!!!

Here's my project that uses Stampotique's fabulous and friendly feline, Chessy and lots and lots of polka-dots! Once again, the photo was taken with my iPhone. I'm pleasantly surprised by the quality of photo, but think that if possible, I'll continue using my old-style camera and take photos outside!

Chessy was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink onto both Neenah cardstock and Eclipse tape. S/he was colored with Copic markers and the stamped panel was die-cut with a Nestabilities Circle die. The Eclipse tape Chessy was fussy-cut, peeled, and placed over colored, die-cut Chessy. Angel Pink Memento ink was sponged over the Dot Fade Layering stencil (on SALE!) and the image panel was set aside so I could work on a background.

Two colors of pink Fresco Finish Acrylic paint were sponged onto 140 lb. Strathmore cardstock and heat set. A darker pink FF Acrylic paint was sponged over the polka-dots part of the Patterned Strips stencil by The Crafter's Workshop and heat set. Bora Bora FF Acrylic paint was sponged over the Layered Beads stencil by The Crafter's Workshop and heat set. The stencil was moved slightly and South Pacific FF Acrylic paint was sponged, then heat set. I should mention that at this point, I hated what I had created, but I figured that maybe I could rescue it, so I sponged Snowflake FF Acrylic paint over a polka dot stencil by Wendy Vecchi, then heat set the paint. Guess what? I liked the result much better. The white polka dots softened the contrast between the turquoise/teals and the pinks.

The background was cut down and edged with Bora Bora FF Acrylic paint, which was also used to edge the stamped, stenciled circle die-cut, which was then adhered to the background. Aqua/turquoise Washi tape was adhered under Chessy's paws. It looked blah, so Pale pink shiny polka-dot ribbon was added. Still blah. I colored some white Doodlebug dotty border thingy with a Copic marker, adhered it over the ribbon, and was happier.

I wanted to add a "Smile" sentiment and came across some ancient Bradwear alphabet rub-ons by Creative Imaginations. I had used some, but got lucky that not only were the letters that I needed still there, but that the rub-ons still worked. So, a piece of polka-dot white vellum was die-cut with a frilly flag tag die and "smile" was added to it. A large turquoise/teal pearl was added to the vellum and smaller turquoise/teal and white pearls were added to the horizontal strip to finish the card!

Thanks for visiting today!

I shall enter this card in the following challenges:
• Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenges: Anything Goes
• The Sisterhood of Crafters: Tags
• Craftitude Challenge: That's Die-licious

Bombshell's Hump Day Hop!

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

This month's theme is "A Cut Above", which means we're to use die-cuts! It's an easy-peasy challenge for me since I have a huge collection of dies and have been collecting them longer than I've collected stamps!

I'm the last stop on the hop. You should have arrived here from Kelli's blog, where you likely saw something fabulous! 

Here's my card! I took a photo of it using my new iPhone. The photo is surprising good, though some of the shading on the cowgirl was wiped out. Oh well.

The focal image is from Bombshell's Retro Cowgirls rubber stamp set. She was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink, colored with Copic markers, fussy cut, and set aside.

I used a ton of dies and a ton of the small icon stamps that are included in all of the sets. 

It's late, so I'll come back tomorrow and add more information... Sorry!

OK. Back. Here's the scoop on what I used.

1.  Cowgirl stamp from the Retro Cowgirls rubber stamp set
2.  Record, bow, music notes, broken heart icons from Man's Ruin rubber stamp set
3.  Cherries, skull icon from the Love and Luck rubber stamp set
4.  Little bomb icon from the Cherry Bomb rubber stamp set
5.  Lock and Key icons from the Bombshell Angel rubber stamp set
6.  Dollar Sign icon from the Sugar Daddy rubber stamp set
7.  Four-leaf clover icon from the Lady Luck rubber stamp set
8. Compass icon from A Pirate's Life rubber stamp set
9. Sentiment from the Harley Motorcycle rubber stamp set
10. Picture Wheel Alterations die by Sizzix
11. MPD Time Pieces by Die-Namics
12. Daisy numbers by QuicKutz
13. Gears by Cherry Lynn Designs
14. Country Charms by Die-Namics
15. Blueprints 1 by Die-Namics (the ribbon)
16. Kraft and Neenah cardstock
17. Patterned paper from Flair Designs
18. Satan Red, Olympia Green, Majestic Blue, Onyx Black VersaFine inks
19. Golden Glitz,  Silvery Shimmer Delicata inks

I thought that the Picture Wheel Alterations die-cut would be a great way to showcase the small icon stamps that come with all Bombshell's rubber stamp sets. I die-cut several layers of white cardboard with the Picture Wheel Alterations die. The numbers and the clock face were also die-cut from white cardboard. The clockface and numbers were adhered to the center of the Picture Wheel and painted with Picket Fence Distress paint.

I took another Picture Wheel Alterations die-cut and placed it on top of a large acrylic mount. The icon stamps were placed onto the acrylic mount using the apertures of the die for positioning. Then it was just a matter of inking the stamp with the various inks and stamping them. Some of the impressions were not perfect, so I used my Copics to deepen the color and fix the impression.

So there you have it!  

If you've gotten lost along the way, here's the blog roster!

Bombshell Blog 

Alison 

Suzi

Kim 

Angie
Marnie
Valerie
Kelli
Kathi

Underwater Steampunk Scene

Here's an underwater Steampunk scene featuring SCACD's digital stamps, Steampunk Siren, Steampunk Hermit, and Nancy's Mech Seahorse.

I resized all three digital stamps and created a scene with them using PhotoElements. The scene was printed out onto Neenah cardstock using my laser printer, then colored using Copic markers. All the rivets, the bubbles, the compass on Nancy's Mech Seahorse, and the claws and eyes of Steampunk Hermit were coated with several layers of Clear Gelly Roll Glaze pen to add clear dimension to them. I also used this pen to add some air bubbles above Nancy's Mech Seahorse. A Clear Stardust Glitter pen was used to add glitter to the orb in the Steampunk Siren's hand.

The sea and sand background were created with my Copic markers. Metallic white cardstock took a ride through the Big Kick inside a 5x7 Cuttlebug Gears embossing folder. Neptune Ancient Page dye ink and Peacock Feathers Distress ink were sponged over the embossed metallic background using the Mini Ink Blending Tool, then heat set. Silvery Shimmer Delicata and Golden Glitz pigment were sponged along the perimeter of the embossed cardstock.

I roughly figured out where the stamped panel would sit and applied Boss Gloss Embossing ink to the area. Very old Desert Tapestry Embossing powder was heat heat. I used an old Paper Shapers Corner punch on the bottom two corners, then slid the stamped panel into place.

A myriad of Gearworks Border,  Mini Gears,(both by Memory Box), Gears (Cherry Lynn), and Spellbinders Gears were die-cut from Brushed Silver Specialty paper by FiberMark. These gears were placed over the embossed gears under the stamped piece, then more gears were adhered on top of these gears.

I haven't decided who will get the card for what occasion, so there's no sentiment.

Thanks for visiting today.

I shall enter this card into the following challenges:
• SanDee and Amelie's Steampunk Challenges: Heavy Metal 
• Craftitude: That's Dielicious

• Copic Marker España: Feminine

• Feeling Crafty Challenges: Girls or Ladies

"Far East" and a 3-2-1 Challenge!

This week's challenge at Outlawz Alcohol Marker Group is a "3-2-1 Challenge"; three embellishments, two patterned paper, and one stamped image. This challenge is sponsored by Ditzie Digi Design, who will be awarding fabulous prizes at the end of the month!

You should go visit my teammates' blogs to check out what they created for this challenge. You can find links to Carla, Dawn, and Penny's blogs down there on the right side.  You should also play along with the challenge and share your project for a chance to win a prize from Ditzie Digi Design. They will be awarding three digis for first prize, two digis for second prize, and one digi for first!

Here's my card that features Far East, one of SCACD's great new digis!

Far East, which is one very detailed stamp, was resized in PhotoElements, then printed onto Neenah cardstock using my laser printer. The image was colored with Copic markers.

The two patterned papers are both from the Bird Song 8x8 pad by Graphic 45. The striped paper, comprised of stripes of gorgeous patterns, is just one sheet! I did use the Fishtail's Stax dies to die-cut the reddish/orange patterned paper and black cardstock. The three coin charms are from my stash and were sewn onto the paper using gold thread.

Thanks for visiting today!

• Paper Shelter Challenge #159: Charming

• Copic Marker España: Feminine

• Feeling Crafty Challenges: Girls or Ladies

Stampotique Steampunk!

Hmmm. I seem to be riding a Steampunk Surge! I'm hosting Stampotique Designers Challenge this week and have challenged everyone to create a Steampunk project! Here's what I said about the challenge!

"As an avid reader of Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Historical Fiction, it's only natural that Steampunk imagery appeals to me. Here's some info for you about Steampunk that I found at online. ( http://www.ministryofpeculiaroccurrences.com/what-is-steampunk/ )

"Steampunk is an inspired movement of creativity and imagination. With a backdrop of either Victorian England or America’s Wild West at hand, modern technologies are re-imagined and realized as elaborate works of art, fashion, and mechanics. If Jules Verne or H.G. Wells were writing their science fiction today, it would be considered “steampunk.”"

My challenge to you is to create a Steampunk project using your stamps and your imagination!"

If you'd like the chance to win $30 worth of Stampotique stamps, you should play along. Visit Stampotique Designers Challenge blog and be sure to read the rules, so that you'll have the chance to win a great prize!!!

Here's my card!

When I saw the new Smitten Moustache Monsters stamp in the latest release, I knew I would have to use it for this challenge. Those Smitten Moustache Monsters are just too perfect for vintage-styled projects!

The Smitten Moustache Monsters were stamped on Neenah cardstock with Tuxedo Black Memento ink, colored with Copic markers and fussy-cut. Diamond Glaze was added to the Smitten Moustache Monsters' eyeballs to make 'em all dimensional and glassy. The monsters were then set aside to dry while I created a proper Steampunk background for them.

I found a sheet of patterned paper in the Destinations stack by Idea-ology that had four 6x6 mostly monochromatic vintage-looking industrial scenes on it. I cut this sheet apart and colored the floor and the machinery with Copic markers. I wanted some of the machine parts to look metallic, so I smooshed Brushed Pewter and Tarnished Brass Distress Stain onto my craft mat and used a Detailer Nibbed Water Brush to paint them. The colored patterned paper was adhered to a card front and both ruler-patterned and rope-patterned Washi tape was added to the base. The Smitten Moustache Monsters were adhered to card front.

I wanted to reinforce the Steampunk vibe, so I die-cut some black cardstock with some Cherry Lynn Gears dies and Memory Box's Mini Gears dies. The gears were all painted with a combination of Brushed Pewter and Tarnished Brass Distress Stain to make 'em look aged and worn. They were then stacked in various ways. A 3L black photo-corner sticker was also painted with the same metallic Distress Stains and a teeny Memory Box's Mini Gears die-cut was added to it.

Ancient QuicKutz hat dies were used to die-cut black cardstock. One of the bigger top hats was cut down into a bowler shape. The hat bands were die-cut from white cardstock and colored with Copic markers. Teeny-tiny Memory Box's Mini Gears die-cuts were adhered to the hat bands and the hats were placed onto the Smitten Moustache Monsters. 

Thanks for visiting today!

I shall enter this card into the following challenges:
• Storyteller Challenges: Steampunk
• Craftitude: That's Dielicious
• Crafts 4 Eternity: To Die For
• SanDee and Amelie's Steampunk Challenges: Heavy Metal 
• Cherry Lynn Designs: Make It Manly

Meet Steampunk Beauty!

If you've been here before, you know that I love Steampunk images, so I was absolutely delighted when I got Steampunk Beauty, which is one of SCACD's newest batch of digital stamps!

Steampunk Beauty was resized  in PhotoElements and printed out onto Neenah cardstock using my laser printer. The image was colored with Copic markers, the took a ride through my Big Kick inside a Nestabilities Petite Oval die. I kept the image panel in the die and sponged Tattered Rose Distress ink over the die around the image. I must say that I love, Love, LOVE the new Mini Ink Blending Tool by Ranger! The round shape affords much better and more even ink coverage and the new Round Mini Ink Replacement Foams are freakin' awesome too. What's even better is that you can wash them out using dish soap, then air dry them. Gotta love that!

When I was done die-cutting the image panel, I coated Steampunk Beauty's monocle and the watch-face with several layers of Gelly Roll Clear Glaze pen, letting the Glaze dry between each layer.

The patterned papers are all from the wonderful new Time Traveler's Memories 6x6 pad by Prima.  Actually, truth be told, I based my color palette on this lovely new paper palette. I was feeling a bit stuck design-wise, so I visited Paper Playful, and found a great sketch online at Crazy 4 Challenges (see below). I love sketches, they make project design so much easier!

Since I love Steampunk so very much, I seem to be collecting lots of Gear (and clock) dies and stencils. I initially pulled out my Gears stencil by The Crafter's Workshop and the Steampunk Lace stencil by ArtistCellar and sponged Distress inks over a script-text sheet from the Time Traveler's Memories 6x6 pad by Prima, but the result overwhelmed the gorgeous image. So I put it aside and will use it with another project!

Instead, I die-cut Brushed Metallic silver specialty paper by FiberMark (sadly defunct) using Memory Box's Gearworks Border. I also used Memory Box's Mini Gears die to die-cut some (screamingly cute) teeny tiny gears from the same paper. I added those to panel on the left side, then stacked some silvery metal gears (which I also collect due to my love of Steampunk) on top of the Gearworks Border. Tiny screw-top brads by Idea-ology were used to attach the metal gears to the die-cut ones. Mini Gears and some small punched hearts were added to the panel to fill some of the white space. Pink ribbon from my stash was used to attach a feather charm to the top of the panel.

Here's the sketch that I used!

Thanks for visiting today!

I shall enter this card in the following challenges!

• Crazy 4 Challenges: Sketch Challenge

• Storyteller Challenges: Steampunk
• Color Me Creative: Pretty Pastels
• Craftitude: That's Dielicious
• Crafts 4 Eternity: To Die For
• SanDee and Amelie's Steampunk Challenges: Heavy Metal

Ciao! It's a Color Challenge!

Here's the palette for this week's color challenge at the Outlawz Alcohol Marker Group.

Our challenges this month are sponsored by Ditzie Digi Design, who will be awarding fabulous prizes at the end of the month!

You should go visit my teammates' blogs to check out what they created for this challenge. You can find links to Carla, Dawn, and Penny's blogs down there on the right side.  You should also play along with the challenge and share your project for a chance to win a prize from Ditzie Digi Design. They will be awarding three digis for first prize, two digis for second prize, and one digi for first!

 Here's my project, using the Vespa rider from Kraftin' Kimmie's Let the Good Times Roll set. 

I had to have the  Let the Good Times Roll set because it had the Vespa rider. I've always found something funny about these scooters and that was exacerbated after seeing Eddie Izzard's Dressed to Kill special, where he did a hilarious bit about Italy. I got out this set and used that image because we're going to see Eddie Izzard's Force Majeure show this Saturday. I'm stoked.

 Anyway, the Vespa rider was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink and colored with Copic markers. The image panel was die-cut using a Circles Nestabilities die. The cardstock was cut using my trusty old CM Cutting System. The patterned paper is from the Maritime 6x6 pad by 7 Gypsies. The corner die-cut is SCACD's Contempo Compass Statement Corner. Ancient Doodlebug rub-ons were used to add the "Ciao" sentiment to the Talk Bubbles die-cut by Simon Says Stamp.

Thanks for visiting today.

I shall enter this card in the following challenges:
• Kraftin' Kimmie's Wonderful Wednesday Challenge: Anything Goes
• Feeling Crafty Challenges: One for the Ladies
• 7 Kids College Fund Challenge #99: Anything Goes
• Simon Says Wednesday Challenges: Die Crazy
• Whimsy Stamps Challenges: Two or More Die-cuts

Put a Tag on It!

This week's challenge over at Stampotique Designers Challenges is hosted by Kaz Broughton , whose challenge is "Tags". Here's what she had to say about it.

"I love using tags on things I make, so my challenge is simple: whatever you make, put a tag on it. You can make a tag for the challenge, but it has to have a tag on it!!"

Here's my tag using Stampotique's Stacked Cups and Barcode Text.

Stacked Cups was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink onto white Neenah cardstock. The image was colored with Copic markers, then fussy-cut. Small slits were added to the rims of two of the teacups.

Teacup and the navy polka-dot patterned paper from the Soho Garden 6x6 pad by American Crafts  were layered, then edged with Tea Dye Distress ink. Really old yellow paper lace from Flair Designs was added to the bottom edge. Clock printed Washi tape was layered over the paper lace, then real lace was stapled over that with my Tiny Attacher. Small QuicKutz tags were die-cut and rub-ons were added to them. Thread was used to attach the tags to two of the teacups, which were then adhered to the layered paper using dimensional foam adhesive.

The top corners of piece of cardstock were punched with a Ticket/Tag punch by Tonic and a hole was punched in the center of the top bit. The tag was edged with Tea Dye Distress ink. The image panel was adhered to the cardstock tag.

A very old Sizzix pocket tag die was used to die-cut patterned vellum. The edges of the pocket were sponged with Tea Dye Distress ink. A small label die-cut by Die-Namics was used to die-cut the vellum and a scrap of the teacup patterned paper. The Barcode Text was stamped onto the vellum with Jet Black StazOn ink. The vellum was stapled to the die-cut teacup patterned paper and a punch was used to add a slit to make the die-cut into another tag. The sentiment tag was adhered to the pocket tag die and a teabag was put into the pocket. A bit of lace was threaded through the hole in the tag. This piece was then adhered to the tag.

Six pieces of seam binding were dyed using Picked Raspberry, Spun Sugar, and Mustard Seed Distress reinkers and water. The dyed seam binding was dried with a heat tool and added to the sentiment tag and the top of the tag.

Thanks for visiting today!

Bombshell Stamps' May Sketch Challenge!

As you may or may not know, I design the sketches for the Bombshell Sketches. I base them on cards or projects I've created in the past, but then seem unable to follow the sketch exactly. Rather odd.

Here's the sketch!

Feel free to take the sketch, flip it, flop it, and make it your own. The only rules are to use the sketch in some recognizable way and to have fun. Share your project on Bombshell's blog for the chance to win a fabulous prize. You don't have to use Bombshell's stamps, but if you do, you'll get an additional chance to win!

Here's my take on the sketch using the the Cowgirl Portrait stamp from the Western Gal set, which is available in both rubber and digital formats.

The Cowgirl Portrait was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink and colored with Copic markers. I used a Nestabilities Circle die to die-cut the image panel and a slightly smaller Nestabilities Circle die to die-cut Eclipse tape. The  Eclipse tape circle was placed over the image and Old Paper Distress ink was sponged around the rim of the circle. I had planned to use Old Paper Distress Stickles, but I don't have that color. Oops. Oh well.

I still had Graphic 45's Domestic Goddess patterned paper out from a previous project, so I decided to use it, so my color palette is based on it. I cut strips from scraps of three different papers to follow the sketch and die-cut the cherry and gingham papers with Nestabilities Circles and Scalloped Circles dies. All the edges of the patterned paper were sponged with Barn Door Distress ink.

Thin rope-patterned Washi was used to cover the seam between the top and bottom halves of the card and to cover up the fact that I apparently can't cut straight. I should mention that this freaking yellow cardstock measures 11 15/16" x 11 15/16"! WTH!!!

The sentiment, also from the Western Gal set, was stamped onto the yellow cardstock with Jet Black Archival ink, then die-cut with Die-Namics Fishtails Flags.

The flowers are seriously old Prima flowers and are accented with Kaisercraft Rhinestones (on sale at SCACD!!!). 

Thanks for visiting today!

I shall enter this card in the following challenges:
• Our Creative Corner: Love those Leftovers!
• The Paper Shelter Challenge #158: Girly-Girl cards
• Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenges: Die Crazy

Bombshell Stamps Muse Monday!

It's Muse Monday on the Bombshell Stamps Blog! We're showcasing the versatile and fun Girl's Ruin set every Monday in May, so be sure to check out what the Bombshell Girls and Pin-Ups have shared! Better yet, this set is on sale until the end of May, so if you like it, you should grab a set for yourself!

Almost every Bombshell Stamps set has several small stamps and icons and this set contains several! I've used A Girl's Sacred Sins stamp on my tag!

A Girl's Sacred Sins, from the Girl's Ruin set was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink and colored with Copic markers.

I used a Nestabilities Circle die from Spellbinders to die-cut the stamped panel. I used a slightly smaller Nestabilities Circle die to die-cut Eclipse tape, which I used to mask the interior of the circle. I sponged Old Paper Distress ink onto the outer rim of the circle to make the image pop out a bit.

I used a Die-Namics tag die to die-cut the patterned papers, which are really old. The music notation paper is from 7 Gypsies. The other patterned paper is from the Boxer 6x6 pad by Basic Grey. All edges were sponged with either Fired Brick or Chipped Sapphire Distress ink.

I used a Simon Says Stamp Small Folded Banner die to die-cut the patterned paper, then used a Cheers die by Elizabeth Craft Designs to die-cut the red cardstoc.

Food for Thought Challenge!

This Sunday is not only Mother's Day here in the U.S., it's Eat What You Want Day! I think that's a fabulous coincidence. I think I'll drink coffee and eat chocolate all day long, then have margaritas and nachos for "Happy Hour", then BBQ with a nice red wine for dinner, and my new favorite, That's My Jam, for dessert.  If you haven't tried any of the delicious new "Core" ice creams by Ben & Jerry's, you should. Just don't blame me for any weight gain!

In honor of Eat What You Want Day, this week's challenge at the Outlawz Alcohol Marker Group is "Food for Thought". You should go visit my teammates' blogs to check out their work and should also play along with the challenge and share your project for a chance to win a prize from Ditzie Digi Design. They will be awarding three digis for first prize, two digis for second prize, and one digi for first!

So, without futher ado... Here's my card, which features the Cherry On Top digital stamp by Ditzie Digi Design.

It was resized in PhotoElements, printed out onto Neenah cardstock, then colored with Copic markers to match the patterned papers I had selected.

I fell back on one of my "go-to" card layouts because I felt like it. The patterned papers are by Graphic 45 (the red gingham), Jenny Bowlin (the cherry patterned paper), and Farmhouse (polka dots and solid).  Most of the papers' edges were sponged with Aged Mahogany Distress ink.  Rope-patterned Washi tape was used to separate the layers and hide the paper seam. The vertical die-cut, from Die-Namics, hides a bit of the patterned paper that I didn't want showing. I'm tricky like that. The flower die-cuts are also by Die-Namics. The cardfront was mounted on a pre-made A2 card from my stash!

Thanks for visiting today!

Squared

Valerie Wilson, Bombshell's Ms. May, set this month's Bombshell Pin-Up Challenge,  "Hip to Be Square". She didn't elaborate any further, opting to see how people interpreted her challenge.

Here's my project using Bombshell's Sacred Heart Art rubber stamp set.

I selected one of the five sacred hearts from the Sacred Heart Art rubber stamp set, stamped it onto Neenah cardstock with Tuxedo Black Memento ink and colored it with Copic markers. I carefully added the black background with Copic markers as well.

The 5" x 5" chipboard frame (from my stash) was painted with Little Black Dress Fresco Finish Acrylic paint and heat set. Crackle Glaze Fresco Finish Acrylic paint was applied over the black paint and heat set. A few drops each of London Bus, Yellow Submarine, and Blood Orange Fresco Finish Acrylic paint were applied to a piece of a car wash sponge, then quickly dabbed over the Crackle Glaze. This layer was heat set to hasten the crackling. Boss Gloss, clear embossing ink in a dabber bottle, was used to apply embossing ink through the Flames stencil by The Crafter's Workshop and the flames were heat set with Filigree Clear Detail embossing powder.

The smaller frame is actually a Technique Tile by Technique Tuesday. I've had it in my stash for ages. London Bus, Yellow Submarine, and Blood Orange Fresco Finish Acrylic paint were sponged over it and heat set. A thin layer of Crackle Glaze was added with a palette knife and heat set. Little Black Dress Fresco Finish Acrylic paint and heat set. Silver Leaf Krylon pen was used to edge the aperture of the frame.

The frames were stacked, the colored Sacred Heart Art piece was adhered, and black cardstock was used to back the piece. 

An Inkssentials Silver Foil Tape sheet was die-cut with a Die-Namics Barbed Wire die and adhered to the top and bottom of the piece.

Thanks for visiting today!

Orange and Pink: Together at last!

This week's challenge over at Stampotique Designers Challenges is hosted by Corrie Herriman, whose challenge is "Orange and Pink". Here's what she had to say about it.

"Hello everybody and happy Wednesday to you. I am hosting today's Challenge and I would like you to use pink and orange in your background. Now my mother used to tell me that orange and pink don't go together but because I am a rebel, I think they do !!! So I would like you to use pink and orange in the background of your project. I am looking forward to see what you come up with. Happy crafting."

Here's my card that features Stampotique's French Journal Page, Barcode, Barcode Text, and Froggie.

As per my usual modus operandi, I misread the challenge and made everything orange and pink, not just the background! Froggie was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink, colored with Copic markers, fussy cut, and set aside while I worked on a suitable background.

A piece of 140 lb. Mixed Media cardstock by Strathmore was sponged with Spun Sugar, Picked Raspberry, Spiced Marmalade, and Persimmon Distress paints until I had a nice variegated orange and pink background. The paints were then heatset.

Spun Sugar, Picked Raspberry, and Persimmon Distress paints were applied to the French Journal Page stamp and stamped to the center-ish of the cardstock. The residual paint was immediately cleaned off of the stamp, then the cardstock was heat set.

Spun Sugar Distress paint was sponged over the Bubbles 5" x 8" stencil by Dylusions and heat set.  Persimmon Distress ink was sponged over the Roman Letters stencil by The Crafter's Workshop and  Picked Raspberry Distress ink was sponged over the Specimen stencil by The Crafter's Workshop. BTW, I just got a bunch of Ranger/Tim's fabulous new Mini Ink Blending Tools and Mini Ink Blending Foams and love, Love, LOVE them!!! They afford fabulous control when sponging and blending inks and are perfect for sponging over stencils.

Barcode and Barcode Text were stamped with Picked Raspberry Distress ink using my handy-dandy Stamp-a-ma-jig, then Froggie was adhered. The card was still missing something on the upper left, so three arrows from the Arrows and Hearts stencil by TCW were sponged in Rusty Hinge and Spiced Marmalade Distress ink.

The screamingly orange and pink card front was adhered to orange cardstock and I called it done.

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In Honor of Cinco de Mayo

That's Frida Kahlo from VeraLane Studio's Frida Kahlo digital stamp set. She was resized in PhotoElements, printed out onto Neenah cardstock using my laser printer, and colored with Copic markers. Clear Gelly Glaze pen was used on her jewelry. Her cheeks received a touch of blush courtesy of chalk pencils.

An additional  Frida was printed out onto regular paper using an ink jet printer and fussy cut to become a mask. Y0000 Copic marker was airbrushed around her, then Y000 Copic marker was airbrushed through the Sunburst stencil by The Crafter's Workshop.

The patterned paper is from the Couture Collection 8x8 pad by Graphic 45. The striped paper is from an older Graphic 45 collection. Black patterned paper was die-cut using a die from Top Dog Dies. Ribbon was adhered, a bow was tied, and a sugar skull charm was used to finish the card.

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May Flowers!

They say that April showers bring May flowers, but we didn't get much rain at all in April. However, yesterday, the first day of May, brought lots and lots of rain, so I hope that the flowers really start blooming!

Tomorrow is Garden Meditation Day (Ommmm), so this week's challenge at the Outlawz Alcohol Marker Group is "May Flowers". You should go visit my teammates blogs to check out their work and should also play along with the challenge and share your project for a chance to win a prize from Ditzie Digi Design. They will be awarding three digis for first prize, two digis for second prize, and one digi for first!

Plus, this week's challenge over at Stampotique Designers Challenges is hosted by Valerie, whose challenge is "Flowers". Here's what she had to say about it all.

April showers are supposed to bring May flowers, so let's add some flower power to our projects! I'll be excited to see if you stamp some flowers, create faux flowers, use a mask to create a flower background or come up with some other original idea for sprinkling a few petals on your project! And a little reminder to visit the Stampotique Designer's Blog for another chance to win!

Since I was working on yet another top secret project, I decided to get all efficient and double up! And since there's are prizes on the line at Stampotique Designer's Blog, you should take my example and play along!

Here's my card, using Sunflower, medium, Smiling Sun, and Whisker Monster with Sign.

Sunflower, medium, Smiling Sun, and Whisker Monster with Sign were stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento ink, colored with Copic markers, and fussy-cut. Whisker Monster with Sign's sign and paws were stamped a second time, colored, and fussy-cut. His left paws were also cut above and below the sign so that he could appear to be holding Sunflower, medium. The sentiment, a blatant rip-off of an old beer commercial, was added to the sign using Doodle-bug rub-ons.

The patterned paper (blue ledger) is really old and came free of its packaging so that I don't know who makes it. Green cardstock was cut twice using the Grass die by Memory Box. That thing has been getting quite the workout lately. I'm glad that someone/thing in this house is working out, though it should be me. Smiling Sun was added to the upper right and the card front was adhered to a pre-made card. I called it done and done is good.

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• Crafty Little Fairies May Challenge: In the Garden
• Simon Says Stamp: Anything Goes
• Party Time Tuesdays: Fussy-Cutting