Happy Halloween Card

I might be an introvert, but I do love to make scenes — in card form. Here’s a Halloween card created with VersaMagic and VersaFine Clair inks, stamping, and some die-cuts.

Imagine Crafts Supplies:

Night Sky, Jumbo Java, Hint of Pesto, Spanish Olive VersaMagic Dew Drop Inks

Moonlight White Brilliance Ink Re-inker

Nocturne VersaFine Clair Ink

Sponge Daubers

Fantastix

Tear It! Tape

Craft Mat

Other Supplies:

Bristol Paper by Strathmore

Carrot Textured Cardstock by Bazzill Basics

Raven Textured Cardstock by Bazzill Basics

Boneyard Edgers Dies by Frantic Stamper

Happy Halloween Dies by Top Dog Dies (defunct)

Zombie Party Clear Stamp Set by Whimsy Stamps

Bat Colony Clear Polymer Stamp by Lavinia Stamps

Low-Tack Tape

Misti  Stamping Platform by My Sweet Petunia

Instructions:

Step 1:

Cut a piece of Bristol paper to 4.75” x 6.75”. Use the Boneyard Edgers die to cut removable sticker paper and place along the bottom of the image panel. Place low tack tape below it.

Use the 1” circle punch to punch the sticker paper and adhere it to the upper left hand side..

Step 2:

Use a Sponge Dauber to apply Night Sky VersaMagic Ink over the masked images onto the background. Heat set.

Step 3:

Spray a little water into a small container. Squeeze a few drops of Moonlight White VersaMagic Re-inker into the pot. Use a paint brush to mix the water and the ink. Tap the inky paintbrush over the night sky background to add splatter to look like stars.

Step 4:

Remove the sticker masks from the moon and from the cemetery. Smoosh the Jumbo Java VersaMagic Dewdrop Inkpad onto a piece of acetate. Lightly mist with water. Use a paintbrush to paint the tree in the graveyard. Heat set. Clean and dry the acetate.

Steps 5A and 5B:

Smoosh the Hint of Pesto VersaMagic Dewdrop Inkpad onto the cleaned piece of acetate. Lightly mist with water. Use a clean paintbrush to apply green ink at the top of the hill below the tombstones, crosses, gate, and tree (5A). Use a Fantastix to apply Spanish Olive VersaMagic Ink to blend this lighter ink below the ink applied in Step 5A. Continue apply the Spanish Olive Versa Magic Ink horizontally to fill in the base of the card and create the cemetery lawn. Heat set the image panel.

Step 6:

Place the image panel onto the base of a stamping platform secured with magnets and low-tack tape. 

Position the clear Zombie stamps from the Zombie Party Clear Stamp Set facedown as desired on the cemetery lawn. Position the Bat Colony Clear Stamp facedown over the moon and sky.

Press the platform’s base onto the back of the stamps. Lift. Ink the stamps with Nocturne VersaFine Clair Ink and stamp. Re-ink and stamp if necessary to attain solid black images. Heat set the panel.

Step 7:

Trim the image panel to 4.625” x 6.625”. Use Nocturne VersaFine Clair Ink to edge the image panel. Cut a piece of orange cardstock to 4.75” x 6.75”. Sorry that there’s no photo.

Step 8:

Apply Tear It! Tape to cover the reverse of a piece of orange cardstock. Use the “Happy Halloween” sentiment dies to cut orange cardstock. Remove the tape’s backing and adhere the sentiment.

Step 9:

Use Tear It! Tape to adhere the layers of the card.

Thanks for visiting today!

Upcycled Cigar Box with PaperArtsy Products

Greetings! It's Tuesday so it's time to share a project created for Topflight Stamps. This week the team is focusing on paints! I decided to use Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic Paints and Printed Tissue Paper by Tracy Scott to upcycle a treasured/hoarded wooden cigar box.

The Top of the Box

The Front of the Box

The Side of the Box

The Inside of the Top of the Box

The Inside of the Bottom of the Box

Topflight Stamps Products Used:

Printed Tissue Paper by Tracy Scott for PaperArtsy

TS054 Rubber Cling Mounted Stamp Set by Tracy Scott for PaperArtsy

Stencil PS322 by Tracy Scott for PaperArtsy

Haystack, Banana, Yellow Submarine, Peach Nectar, Tango, Tangerine Twist, Blood Orange, London Bus, Prawn, Vintage Lace, Haze, Snowflake, and China Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic Paints

Nocturne, Bali Blue, and Monarch VersaFine Clair Inks by Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko

Other

Cigar Box

Sand Paper

Inkssentials Cut 'N' Dry Foam Stamp Pad by Ranger Ink*

Rough Stippling Tool formerly known as the Pouncy Tool

Paint Brushes

Blush, French Roast, Chocolate Pudding, Caribbean Sea, and Purple Rain Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic Paints

140 lb. Mixed Media Paper

Gold Metallic Cardstock by Recollections

Raven Texured Cardstock by Bazzill Basics

Media Matte Medium by DecoArt

Yellow, Bright Yellow, Butterscotch, Pumpkin. Orange, Persimmon, and Black Le Plume II Markers by Marvy Uchida

White Gelly Roll Gel Pen by Sakura of America

Flat Back Pearls from Ye Olde Stash

Precision Craft Glue by Bearly Art

Tiny Text Remnant Rubs by Tim Holtz for Idea-ology/Advantus

Specimen Thinlits Die Set by Tim Holtz for Sizzix

Low-tack Tape

STAY-tion by Wendy Vecchi for Ranger Ink

Stamping Platform

Instructions:

1. Sand the cigar box until it's relatively smooth.
2. Add two drops each of China and Caribbean Sea Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic Paints to the foam side of a piece of Inkssentials Cut 'N' Dry Foam. 
3. Smoosh the inked side of the foam onto a craft mat to spread the paint drops.
4. Pounce the painty foam onto the top of the cigar box, turning the foam between pounces to vary the pattern.
5. Repeat Steps #2 through 4 until the top of the cigar box is painted. 
6. Repeat Steps #2 through 4 along the sides and back of the cigar box. 
7. Add a few drops of Purple Rain Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic Paint to the craft mat.
8. Pounce the Rough Stippling Tool into the paint, then pounce the tool onto the top and sides of the cigar box.
9. Use China Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic Paint to paint the sides of inside bottom and top of the box. 
10. Sand the paint off of the box's brass latch and hinges. 
11. Roughly cut out the areas of the Printed Tissue Paper 4 by Tracy Scott that you'd like to use. I cut the Calavera Catrina, a flower, a bee, and sugar skulls.
12. Place the cut Printed Tissue Paper onto a hard surface, dip a paint brush into water, then brush the water around part of the outside outline of the image.Use a stylus or other sharp utensil and pull the wet tissue paper away from the outline.
13. Continue Steps #10 and 11 until the desired Printed Tissue Paper images are done.
14. Flip the Sugar Skull Printed Tissue Paper image over to reveal the reverse. Note that you will still be able to see the outlines of printed image, but they're paler.
15. Add a few drops of Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic Paint to your craft mat.
16. Use paint brushes to paint small areas of the sugar skull on the back of the tissue paper, keeping only the face area and the whites of the eyes clear of paint! 
17. Use Snowflake Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic Paint to paint over the face of the Sugar Skull.
18. Flip the tissue paper Calavera Catrina, the bee, the flower, and the sugar skulls over and paint the reverse of the images.
19. Set all the tissue papers aside to dry.
20. Use Nocturne VersaFine Clair Inks to stamp the two smallest triangles from the TS054 Rubber Cling Mounted Stamp Set by Tracy Scott three times each onto mixed media cardstock so you have a total of six small triangles. Heat set.
21. Use Le Plume markers to color the triangles, fussy-cut them, then edge them with the black marker.
22. Cut Mixed Media paper to two 6.25" x 6" panels to fit the interior of the box.
23. Use Bali Blue VersaFine Clair Ink  to ink both pieces. Heat Set.
24. Use low-tack tape to secure one of the inked panels to the back of the Stencil PS322 by Tracy Scott.
25. Place the stencil and panel onto the STAY-tion and secure with magnets.
26. Sponge or Brush Monarch VersaFine Clair Ink over the stencil onto the panel.
27. Remove the stencil. 
28. Edge the panel with Monarch VersaFine Clair Ink and heat set the entire panel. Set aside.
29. Brush a layer of Matte Medium* onto the other Bali Blue inked panel. While the medium is wet, place the painted tissue paper flower on the top left as shown. Try to smooth out the flower as much as possible. I actually missed a corner. Oops.
30. Brush another layer of Matte Medium over the flower and the rest of the Bali Blue panel. Place the bee so that its front legs/antenna are overlapping the flower.
31. Smooth it out as much as possible.
32. Brush another layer of Matte Medium over the tissue paper images and the entire panel. Set aside to air dry.
33. When dry, use Monarch VersaFine Clair Ink to edge the panel.
34. Use glue to adhere the stenciled panel into the bottom of the box and the flower/bee panel to the inside of box top being sure to smooth out both panels as much as possible.
35. Close the box.
36. Brush a layer of Matte Medium to the top of the box. Smooth the painted tissue Calavera Catrina onto the wet Matte Medium to adhere it to the top of the box. Let air dry.
37. Brush a layer of Matte Medium over the painted tissue Calavera Catrina to seal it. * 
38. Let it air dry for a bit, then use a heat gun from a distance to hasten the drying process.
39. Brush Matte Medium over the bottom part of the front of the box. Smooth the five painted tiny sugar skulls onto the wet Matte Medium. Let air dry thoroughly before brushing the sealing layer of Matte Medium over the skulls.
40. Use Matte Medium to adhere three painted triangles per side as shown. Let dry.
41. Use the White Tiny Text Remnant Rubs to add sentiments to the front of the box as shown.
42. Use the nameplate dies from the Specimen Thinlits Die Set to cut black and gold cardstock.
43. Use the White Tiny Text Remnant Rubs to add "Memories" to the black die-cut.
44. Adhere the two parts of the nameplate together.
45. Use glue to adhere two black half pearls to cover the holes in the nameplate.
46. Use glue to adhere two different sizes of white, black, gold, and silver flat back pearls to the top of the box.

Notes:

• Whilst painting on the reverse of printed tissue paper, don't worry about staying in the lines! In fact, it's beneficial to go over the lines to avoid any white area peeking through to the other side!
• Feel free to use a paint brush to mix small drops of Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic Paint to create alternate colors. 
• Blush, French Roast, Chocolate Pudding, Caribbean Sea, and Purple Rain Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic Paints are not available at Topflight Stamps. However, BoraBora or Beach Hut are a decent substitute for Caribbean Sea.  Eggplant is a good substitute for Purple Rain and Vintage Lace will work in place of Blush.
• Matte Medium: I got lucky that I had an unopened jar of this discontinued medium as I wanted a clear and matte medium to adhere the painted tissue paper images to all surfaces. Otherwise I would have been happy to use PaperArtsy's Mattints.
• I probably should have waited a bit after adhering the tissue paper images to the surfaces with Matte Medium to let them air dry fully before adding the sealing coats.
• My dad smoked cigars for years, preferring a brand called Te Amo that was packaged in wooden cigar boxes. When he was done smoking the cigars, he kept the boxes and put miscellaneous stuff in them. When he passed, I inherited his collection of cigar boxes.

Beware! A Halloween Card

Greetings! My card was created for Day Four of the Lost Coast Portal of Creativity's 31 Days of Halloween Challenge. I used the Clown with Balloon stamp by Lost Coast Designs and the Medium Keyhole stamp from Carmen's Veranda. 

Here it is!

Products Used:

Clown with Balloon Rubber Stamp by Lost Coast Designs

 Medium Keyhole Rubber Stamp by Carmen's Veranda

Solar White Classic Crest Cardstock by Neenah Papers

140 Lb. Mixed Media Paper by Strathmore

Light Grey Cardstock 

Tuxedo Black and London Fog Memento Ink by Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko

Stormy Sky and Dusty Concord Distress Ink by Tim Holtz for Ranger Ink

Lightning Black Brilliance Ink by Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko

Nocturne VersaFine Clair Ink by Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko

Clouds Stencil by Virginia England

Time Tunnel Stencil by Visible Image

Copic Markers: 

Clown: T0, T1, T2,T3, W00, W0, E40, BG90, G0000, YR12, YR15, YR16, YR18, R22, R24, R35, R39

Keyhole: Y21, Y23, Y26, Y28

Yellow and Red Triplus Fineliner Pens by Staedtler

White Gelly Roll Gel Pen by Sakura of America

Black Multiliner by Copic

Woodgrain MBossabilities

Red Alphabet Rub-ons by Doodlebug Designs

Halloween Idea-ology Remnant Rubs by Tim Holtz for Advantus

Repositionable Sticker Paper by Avery

STAY-tion by Wendy Vecchi for Ranger Ink

Stamping Platform

Instructions:

1. Cut a piece of pale grey 12x12 cardstock to 10" x 7", score at 5", and fold to form a 5" x 7" card. Set aside.
2. Use Tuxedo Black Memento Ink to stamp the Medium Keyhole twice — once onto white cardstock and once onto repositionable sticker paper. 
3. Fussy-cut the sticker paper version on the inner outline of the keyhole.
4. Place the sticker paper over its cardstock counterpart to mask the outside of the keyhole while keeping the center open.
5. Place the clouds stencil towards the top of the opening of the keyhole.
6. Sponge or brush Stormy Sky then Dusty Concord Distress inks over the stencil onto the cardstock. 
7. Rotate and move the stencil downward.
8. Sponge the same inks over the stencil onto the cardstock.
9. Repeat this process until the opening in the keyhole was filled with a stormy cloudy sky. 
10. Place the Time Tunnel Stencil over the opening of the keyhole.
11. Sponge London Fog Memento Ink over the stencil onto the cloudy sky in the keyhole, sponging heavily in the center of the tunnel and lighter as the tunnel goes outwards.
12. Remove the repositionable sticker mask.
13. Use Copic markers to color the outside of the keyhole to look like brass.
14. Fussy-cut the keyhole and edge with a dark marker. 
15. Use red alphabet rub-ons to add a sentiment to the bottom of the opening of the keyhole.
16. Use Tuxedo Black Memento Ink to stamp the Clown with Balloon onto white cardstock.
17. Fussy-cut the clown, color him with Copic markers, and edge with a black pen. 
18. Use Tuxedo Black Memento Ink to stamp just the balloon area of the Clown with Balloon several times onto white cardstock.
19. Fussy-cut the balloons and color them with Copic markers.
20. Use a white gel pento add highlights to all the balloons. 
21. Set the colored Clown and balloons aside.
22. Use Lightning Black Brilliance Ink, a brassy metallic ink, to ink a piece of mixed media cardstock to look like an escutcheon. 
23. Trim the panel, edge with Nocturne VersaFine Clair ink, and heat set.
24. Use Halloween Idea-ology Rub-ons to add sentiments to the upper left of the panel.
25. Mist a 5" x 7" panel of light grey cardstock (left from Step 1) with water. Place it into the wood-grain embossing folder, and run it through the die-cut machine.
26. Adhere the embossed panel to the reserved 5" x 7" light grey card, and edge the card with Nocturne VersaFine Clair ink.
27. Adhere the Clown with Balloon and his extra balloons  to the Keyhole as shown. 
28. Adhere the keyhole to the brass escutcheon, then adhere the escutcheon to the wood paneled card.

I sure hope you play along with the Lost Coast Portal to Creativity's 31 Days of Halloween Challenge!

Thanks for visiting today!

Halloween Card with Lavinia Stamps!

Greetings! Today's my day to share a project created for Topflight Stamps. Can you believe it's October already? I've got a witchy card for you using several of Lavinia Stamps' 2024 Halloween stamps. 

Here it is!

Topflight Stamps Products Used:

Coven of the Moon Clear Polymer Stamp Set by Lavinia Stamps

Mini Jinx Clear Polymer Stamp by Lavinia Stamps 

Bubbling Cauldron Clear Polymer Stamp Set by Lavinia Stamps

Magical Mist Clear Polymer Stamp by Lavinia Stamps

Hills Acetate Mask Set by Lavinia Stamps

Sundance, Confetti, Della Blue, Blue Lagoon, Dark Denim, Pine, and Olive Elements Inks by Lavinia Stamps

Nocturne and Medieval Blue VersaFine Clair Inks by Imagine Crafts

Fine Spray Misters by Spectrum Noir

Gelly Roll Bold Line Stardust Clear Glittering Ink Pens by Sakura

Other Products Used:

Solar White Classic Crest Cardstock by Neenah Papers

Raven Black Textured Cardstock by Bazzill Basics

Violet, Sapphire, Grey Le Plume II Dual Tipped Markers by Marvy Uchida

White, Grass Green, Olive Green Chalk Pencils by Generals

Marine Blue and Purple Stardust Glitter Gel Pens by Sakura

91% Isopropyl Alcohol

Low-tack tape

STAY-tion by Wendy Vecchi

Stamping Platform

Instructions:

1. Create an A2 card from Raven cardstock. Set aside.
2. Cut a panel of white cardstock to 4" x 5.25" and place onto the STAY-tion.
3. Place the flattest mask from the Hills Acetate Mask Set horizontally across the image panel and secure it to the cardstock and the STAY-tion with magnets.
4. Sponge or brush Sundance Elements Ink over the top of the mask onto the image panel. 
5. Working upwards from the yellow inked area, brush or sponge Confetti, Della Blue, Blue Lagoon, and Dark Denim Elements Inks horizontally onto the image panel overlapping the previous color and blending the inks to create a sunset sky. 
6. Use one of the misters from the Fine Spray Misters to mist the inked panel with 91% Isopropyl Alcohol. The alcohol will blend the colors slightly, add white specks, and visual interest. 
7. Remove the mask from the Hills Acetate Mask Set from the image panel, trace it onto scrap cardstock, and fussy-cut the cardstock along the trace lines.
8.  Place the top part of the traced cardstock to cover the yellow part of the sky. Secure with magnets.
9. Brush or sponge Pine and Olive Elements Inks below the hand-made mask to create a grassy area.
10. Remove and reserve the handmade mask.
11. Place the image panel onto a stamping platform and secure with magnets.
12. Place the largest witch from the Coven of the Moon Clear Polymer Stamp Set facedown on the image panel as shown. 
13. Position the Mini Jinx Clear Polymer Stamp facedown on the image panel to the right of the witch.
14. Position the Bubbling Cauldron Clear Polymer Stamp Set facedown to the left of the witch.
15. Press the platform's lid onto the back of all three stamps and lift.
16. Ink all three stamps with Nocturne VersaFine Clair Ink and stamp. Re-ink and stamp again if necessary to attain good impressions.
17. Remov the image panel from the stamping platform and heat set
18. Place the image panel back onto the stamping platform and secure with magnets.
19. Position the Magical Mist Clear Polymer Stamp facedown on the image panel over the stamped Bubbling Cauldron.
20. Press the platform's lid onto the back of the stamp and lift.
21. Ink the stamp with Medieval Blue VersaFine Clair Ink by Imagine Crafts and stamp.
22. Remove the image panel from the platform and heat set. 
23. Use Le Plume II markers and chalk pencils to detail the images and the grassy area. 
24. Use a clear Gelly Roll Bold Line Stardust Clear Glittering Ink Pen as well as Marine Blue and Purple Stardust Glitter pensto add some glitter to the contents of the cauldron. 
25. Use Medieval Blue VersaFine Clair Ink to edge the image panel. Heat set.
26. Adhere the image panel to the reserved black card.

Thanks for visiting today!