Spotlight on Gerberas

I've been playing with my new Gerbera stamp from Altenew and if you ask me what are my favourite flowers I would honestly say orange and yellow gerberas. I just love how cheery they are so when I saw Altenew had added a gerbera stamp to their "Paint A Flower" series I was in!

As the series is called Paint a Flower I thought I would try some simple watercolouring with my Zig real color markers which I haven't played with for such a long time. Don't ask me why as they are so fun and so easy to use but I guess I grab my Copics more these days.  

AAA Birthday Cards and Just Add Ink card challenge sites are challenging us to use flowers  this week.

Supply List:
Stamps: Paint a Flower: Gerbera Revolution (Altenew) and Easy Expressions: Birthday (The Ton) and matching die set.
Ink: Versafine Clair Nocturne, Early Espresso (SU!), Versamark

Paper: Neenah Solar White 110lb, Ranger Watercolor (as it is WHITE)
Other: Champagne Rhinestones (SU!), stampin' dimensionals, Zig real color markers, aquapainter, copper embossing powder, MISTI, Waffle Flowers A2 rectangle dies, Crafty Corners

Technique: Spotlight Stamping 
Challenges: AAA Birthday cards, Just Add Ink

There is plenty of time to enter both challenges so if you have time have a play with your favourite flower stamp set. I have to admit I used my MISTI,  A2 rectangle dies, Crafty Corners to make lining up everything for the spotlight technique a doddle.

In case you wonder what a Crafty Corner is its a Perspex corner of varying sizes so you can line up your layers and I LOVE THEM! In New Zealand Krafters Cart is selling them and I overlooked them for awhile but I think they are a great investment.

Thanks for popping in.

✿ Karen ✿

Monster in the box

Hi everyone a couple of Challenge sites have one layer cards as their challenge this week so it was time for the "cute" factor! 

 I just love the monsters in Monster Fun by Gerda Steiner Designs and the set also has some really fun sayings too. 

I normally Copic colour on X-press IT blending card stock and love it but knew in the USA they use Neenah Solar White so that is what I chose to colour on as I was only allowed one layer.

Supply List:
Stamps: Monster Fun (GSD)

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Versafine Clair Nocturne

Paper: Neenah Solar White 110 lb

Other: Clear embossing powder

Copics: BG0000/000/01/10/11/13; BV00; E53/55/57; R20; RV21/23/25; Y02/06/08; YR23

Challenges: Less is More, The Paper Players

I think I'm going to add some Crystal Glaze to my present box spots and some Wink of Stella to my bow but it's a very grey day today so my photo is probably as good as I am going to get for today. It is a good day for crafting though :)

Edited 26/6/22:  a close up now I've jazzed it up with Crystal Glaze (Nuvo) and my clear Wink of Stella.

EDITED again: My card was chosen by the DT at The Paper Players for I made the CUT ABOVE.

✿ Karen ✿

CAS Condolence Cards

I blogged the other day as I had a fab play day with all my shimmer powders playing along with AAA Cards challenge to make a 1/9th card using a butterfly.

Now my first play/attempt for the above challenge was with Nuvo Shimmer "Lilac Waterfall" which was so pretty I thought it was the perfect background to make a CAS Condolence card and this is the theme at CAS on Fridays this week.

The sentiment strip was one sitting in a box on my desk as the Easy Expression Sentiments from The Ton give you multiple sentiments (this is obviously the sympathy set). The butterfly comes from an old stamp set I have had for yonks called Up the Happy (Essentials by Ellen - Ellen Hutson)

I also had some more left over bits to made a second much brighter card and toned the butterfly down with some vellum paper but I really like the shadings on the lilac card and think it is perfect for a sympathy card. The DT at CAS on Friday agreed with me and chose my card as a "favourite".

Thanks for fluttering by.

✿ Karen ✿

My first Christmas Cards for 2022

I am so happy to report that CAS Christmas challenge site has started their Christmas Card challenge site as it's always good to get started early as the big day sure can sneak up on you fast as you approach the end of the year.

The challenge is to use a wreath and be CAS I probably have failed at both but rapt I have my first Christmas cards created and in fact I managed to make THREE  in the design process. 

My final Christmas card design in 2021 used SU! DSP Whimsy and Wonder which used non-traditional colours and I loved it as it was so cheery. So the colours I started off were Mint Macaron and Blushing Bride with the smallest Poinsettia leaf but I thought that looked to busy so swapped to the ??pine branch. I then decided I didn't like that colour combo so changed to Misty Moonlight and Polished Pink. Now I have made all 3 cards I like them all but I still like the brighter colours best.

Supply List (all SU! apart from the sentiment stamp from Lawn Fawn and Gina K Designs wreath builder):
Stamps: Poinsettia Petals, Spotlight on Christmas, Tiny Tag Sayings (Lawn Fawn)
Ink: Misty Moonlight and Polished Pink OR Mint Macaron and Blushing Bride

Dies: Tasteful Labels (white stitched inner circle), Stitched Shaped Framelits

Paper: Whisper White, Misty Moonlight and Polished Pink OR Mint Macaron and Blushing Bride

Other: 4" Wreath Builder Template (GKD), Basic Rhinestones, dimensionals

Well I very happy to see I was/am going to be challenged to start making Christmas cards; not so happy I don't actually own anything that looks like a wreath stamp or die. I fear I am not clean and simple enough but I'm really happy with my 3 cards and it's great to start on the Christmas cards.

So merry wishes to you all!

✿ Karen ✿

More Joseph's Coat with a stencil

The Joseph's coat technique using a stencil was one of my favourite cards I recreated from Online Card Classes Stamp Camp, last time I used a rainbow of colours and then stenciled over with Black Soot ink (this is my original blog post HERE). 

When I saw the colour combo at Just Add Ink this week I wondered if I could try doing the technique using the "basic gray" to stencil over the blended colours.

Now I don't own Basic Gray ink but own a dark gray ink from Hero Arts. I decided to use a different stencil and also to use a masking stencil to give me a rectangle of colour with a frayed edge as I needed Very Vanilla on the card and with this technique you can't leave any Very Vanilla un-stenciled.

Supply List:
Stamps: Just Saying (retired SU! and matching die)

Ink: Crushed Curry (SU!), Pumpkin Pie (SU!), Soft Granite (HA), Versamark

Paper: Very Vanilla (SU!), Pumpkin Pie (SU!)

Stencils: Frayed Edge Masking (TE), Flower Medley small (RNG - Dylusions)

Other: Clear EP, blending brushes, dimensionals

And the final card, which I really like as it's bright and "funky".

Again another fab colour combo to use in the future. Hope you can play along or if you don't have time check out all the inspiration on the Just Add Ink site.

Thanks for popping in.

✿ Karen ✿

Just a 1/9th card

Having a play with the challenge at AAA Cards to create a CAS card which uses a butterfly and the brief to use 1/9th of our card (so lots of white space). 

Well that sounds like an easy card to do and it was. I still wanted to have a wee pop, so got out my old Color Burst and Color Crush powders. These are all so intense and you only need a tiny weeny puff/sprinkle to create. 

 My original plan was to "colour in the bottom left 1/9th panel" the first go was about 3/9th - it spread too much when I spritzed with my mister bottle, so I was being very controlled when I made this background on watercolour paper with Ken Oliver's Alizarin Crimson and Solar Flare Color Burst powders with a few drops of Platinum liquid metal added after I had spritzed with water. Again it's too much colour i.e. more than 1/9th.

This background was too pretty to discard so I changed my mind and black embossed some butterflies and die cut them out from the panel. Decided that looked too plain by themselves so made a wash with Blue Heaven and Pineapple Color Crush powders by Tinby Designs to give me a sky/grass wash behind the butterfly.  I just used some old retired cardstock from SU! called Natural White (it's a bit thicker than the old whisper white and is an off white colour with wee brown flecks in it) for my card base and it handled the colour wash a OK.

I then black embossed the sentiment from Watercolor Wings (SU!) directly onto the card base. My adorable butterfly comes from an old stamp set called Up The Happy (Essentials by Ellen).

I'm really like the AAA challenges, as making cute cards with WOW quick and easily. Thanks for fluttering by to visit. They DT at AAA also liked my card and I was chosen as a "Top 3" card.

✿Karen ✿

Lack of coffee or tea was a real challenge for me

The latest Just Add Ink challenge is pick 2 from coffee, tea, and/or friend. I knew I didn't own any tea or coffee-themed stamp sets. It's just not something I can ever envisage sending a friend so therefore no need to buy. 

I would have thought somewhere in one of my stamp sets a cute animal would be holding a cup but no they like holding balloons or presents!!! Nor do I own any inkpads that have coffee or tea in their names. 

 Now I of course could have chosen not to do the challenge but that's not really challenging is it! 

A long time ago, way back in 2009 Shelli Gardner the CEO of SU! made a beautiful Shelli-card at convention and she had dyed the ribbon with tea or coffee and I had recreated her card when I got home so I was thinking about using cold coffee to watercolour but decided against it as who wants a brown card. If you are interested in seeing that card click HERE to see my old blog post.

So I decided to use cold coffee to make a watercolour background. Again I didn't want it to be brown. So I started off on watercolour paper with a fine script stencil from The Crafters' Workshop which I ink blended Saltwater Taffy distress ink through and then whilst the stencil was in place I used a palette knife to lay a very thin layer of Glitter Hero Paste over the top.

When it was dry I did 2 washes of a very strong coffee brew using a large paintbrush, drying between each wash. When totally dry I spritzed with Shimmer spray and then dabbed it up. So the background is very sparkly and shimmery in real life on top of the fine layer of glitter paste and dare I say it very coffee smelling too (hoping that fades in time).

I then used Versafine Clair Nocturne ink to stamp my flower bouquet on water colour paper. I have stamped it twice using my MISTI. I have watercoloured in my flowers using Karin Brushmarker Pro and a no.2 round paintbrush. I scribbled the marker on my media mat and then used my paint brush and water to colour in, though I have added the marker directly to some of the lines and then painted over with the colour wash. I have done a very light wash of Oatmeal using my Zig Real Color marker as it was light enough in the big gaps of the die cut.

Supply List:
Stamps: Sketchbook Bouquet and matching die (TE), Friendly Hello (SU! - retired SAB)

Ink: Saltwater Taffy distress ink (RNG), Versamark, Versafine Clair Nocturne
Paper: Watercolour (SU!), Petal Pink (SU!), Natural White (SU! - retired)

Watercolor markers: Pale Orange, Soft Peach 2, Ochre, Oatmeal (the first 3 are Karin, the last one is a ZIG)
Other: Mini believe script stencil (TCW), Glitter Hero paste (HA), sheer shimmer sparkle spritz spray (Imagine Crafts), Rose Gold EP (ALT), Champagne rhinestones (SU!), dimensionals (SU!), no. 2 round paint brush (Silver Velvet), blending brush

Well I am so glad I did this challenge, the card is amazing in real life and I wish you could see the  shimmer on the background which is so pretty in real life but at the same time subtly there.

 
✿ Karen ✿

Just A Hello

I'm playing with "to me" my new stencil and stamp set from Pinkfresh Studio called Just A Hello Floral. The set has 5 stencils (3 for flowers and 2 for leaves). 

I have to admit this was probably the first stamp and stencil set I ever bought. I bought it at SENZ in July 2021 and it was the only stamp set with stencils and matching die I could buy at the time. As this was at a time when all my crafting supplies were in a box between house moves, I never got to play with it until now. 

 It's actually a very cool stamp set and die as the image when cut with the die gives you 2 floral strips or if you just stamp directly onto a card you have room in the middle for a saying. Even the sentiments that come with the set are a one piece stamp and matching die.

Most people do use both bits on a card but I made 2 cards which I love. I decided to use the set for the latest challenge at CAS Colour and Sketches whose challenge this week is to use Crushed Curry, Gorgeous Grape and Pear Pizzazz on a card.

This certainly is not a colour combo I would ever have dreamt of but I love my cards so much so I am not sure which card to enter so I maybe cheeky and enter both! I have embossed the image with Rose Gold embossing powder. Otherwise I think it is all pretty obvious. 

Supply List:
Stamps, Stencils and Dies: Just a Hello Floral (Pinkfresh Studios)
Ink: Crushed Curry (SU!), Gorgeous Grape (SU!), Pear Pizzazz (SU!), Versamark
Paper: White, Pear Pizzazz (SU!), Strathmore Bristol smooth (for blending)

Other: Rose Gold EP (ALT), some old retired SU! embossing folder ?name, single stitched line rounded rectangle die (MFT), Iridescent jewels and pearls (SU!), adhesive strips and dimensionals (SU!), corner rounder, blending brushes (TE)

Thanks for popping in.

✿ Karen ✿

CAS Shaker Card

AAA Cards challenge site this week has a gorgeous picture of macarons which look delectably scrummy plus the brief to make a shaker card. 

Now I love making shaker cards but making it CAS was a challenge all right and when I look at my supply list I have to laugh out loud so many supplies for so little but so "stinking cute", even if I say so myself. 

Supply List:
Stamps: Circle Sayings (SSS), BB Beary Special Birthday (SU!)
Ink: Intense Black (SSS), Flirty Flamingo (SU!), Bermuda Bay (SU!), Sunshine (Pinkfresh), Highland Heather (SU!)

Paper: White, Xpress-IT blending

Copics: B00/02/05, R000/30/32, V01/15/17, Y00/02/06/08
Dies: Layering Circles (SU!), Stitched Rectangles (SSS)

Other: Confetti stencil (Lawn Fawn), blending brushes, acetate, red tape, foam adhesive strips (SU!), Wink of Stella (clear), Pinata Party mix (PPP), powder tool (so I could dust of the inside of the foam strips so the shaker bits don't stick to it)

A close up so you can see the shiny presents with their Wink of Stella on them. It's about to pour down here so not the best picture but hopefully you can see the sparkle.

There are some absolutely fab example of tiny shaker cards so even if you don't join the challenge check them all out as they are very inspirational!!
✿ Karen ✿

Edited 20 June 2022 : OMG my wee card was picked as the winner :) Thanks to Jane for the challenge at AAA cards and for picking my wee shaker as her favourite.

Wishing you brighter days

It's sketch time at Just Add Ink this week, which if I have to be honest makes the card design easier. I was tossing and turning between using DSP or 2 different embossing folders for the panels. I'm also playing along with Tic, Tac, Toe challenges too using "embellishment, animal and free".

I knew I wanted to use a cute mouse and an umbrella stamp I owned and after one false start with another set of DSP and a change of mind I settled on the SAB DSP I earnt at the start of the year from Stampin' Up! called Sunshine & Rainbows. 

I chose the green rainbows as they were pretty but not overpowering the cute image. The colours of Copic I chose to colour the mice in were the Copic equivalents of SU! colours in the DSP which are Granny Apple Green, So Saffron, Moonlight Madness, Soft Sea Foam and Bermuda Bay. I have used Wink of Stella on the umbrella and Stardust stickles on the outfit's "fur". I have fussy cut everything out.

Supply List:
Stamps: Under the Weather (Gerda Steiner Designs - mouse with umbrella), Look for Rainbows (Avery Elle - puddle and saying)

Ink: Memento black, Versamark

Paper: X-press IT blending card stock, Whisper White, Granny Apple Green, Misty Moonlight, Sunshine and Rainbows DSP

Other: Iridescent rhinestones (SU!), white embossing powder (Alabaster - Brutus Monroe), Wink of Stella (clear), Stardust Stickles, dimensionals

Copics used:

Puddle: BG0000, BG000, BG01

Umbrella: YG03, YG25 ~ Y21, Y23 ~ BG11, BG13, BG15 ~ G20,G21 ~ E97, E99

Mouse: N0, N1, N3, N5, R30

Scarf: G20, G21

Jacket: B91, B95, B97

 

It's a lovely day in Hamilton today after heavy rain for days so my card worked and sent me some brighter days! 

 
✿ Karen ✿

Colour Blocking

What a simple but effective technique I learnt at Spring Camp with Online Card Classes, day 6's tutor was Keisha Charles from The Paper Mint and she showed us 3 amazing techniques with colour and cover dies.

She also only used white card stock and used blending brushes to colour up the white card stock which was highly effective. I went with the cleaner way and used coloured card stock and followed the pattern we were given to mark and cut out the 3 panels. I can see I am a wee bit out with one of my measurements as the gaps should all be 1/4" but still highly effective and I still have the pieces to make 2 more cards so really quick and easy to make 3 cards.

Now I only have one cover die so I could only try one of the techniques but in time I hope to try the other 2 examples as they really packed a big WOW. No stamps have been used in KReating my card today too. My card is an A2 card as is the cover die.

Supply List:

Dies: Dotted Tile debossing cover die (Altenew) and Artistic (SU! - leaves)

Paper: White (SSS), Pumpkin Pie (SU!), Coastal Cabana (SU!) and So Saffron (SU!)
Other: Rainbow Sentiments (Pinkfresh Studios), adhesive strips, dimensionals, jewels (TE)


✿ Karen ✿

Another Spring Camp card

I can not tell you how much I have enjoyed this series of classes at Online Card Classes, some of my enjoyment was being able to craft along with the lessons but even now I would say it is still worthwhile signing up to the course which is phenomenal value @$25USD for 11 days of lessons plus 2 live chats as well where Kristina and Jennifer put their spin on some of the techniques we have been taught.

Todays card is emboss resist with a twist with Heather Hoffman from Pinkfresh Studios. In essence it was adding an emboss resist background behind a stenciled image.

I have used predominantly Pinkfresh Studios products (ink and stencil) apart from what listed below.

Supply List:

Stamps: Label Love (Altenew), En Francais (SU!)

Stencil: Miss Your Smile

Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, Sunshine, Sweet Mustard, Marigold, Parakeet Party (SU!), Granny Apple Green (SU!), Versamark

Paper: White, Parakeet Party (SU!)

Other: Blending Brushes, A2 layer dies (Waffle Flowers), Craft Corners (Stamp Junkies), white embossing powder

I have recently invested in the yellow inks from Pinkfresh Studios as I am really enjoying stenciling to colour and I wanted some blending inks to colour with. I can't afford to buy too many extra inks as I already have my SU! inks and about 1/3rd of the  Distress Oxide ink range . So it  was hard to choose what company to go with as so much choice but as most of my stencils I own come from Pinkfresh and they don't have a huge range I went with them and I really love how bright and cheerful the three yellows I managed to buy are and they are very easy to blend with. I still haven't managed to buy the lightest yellow Lemon Whip as it's out of stock but hopefully will be able too in the future. 

I also have invested in the A2 layering dies from Waffle Flowers and the Crafty Corners from "Stamp Junkies" that Krafters Cart has available to buy in NZ. I'm hoping my layering will not be so wonky now. 

The crafty corners are a set of 90° angle corner guides that help align matted layers of card stock on homemade greeting cards or scrapbook pages, creating a beautiful framed image. The corners work great by themselves or in a stamping platform, such as the MISTI. A tremendous help to crafters who have trouble eyeballing even placement or those of us with shaking hands.

The set includes 7 different measurements including: 3/4”, 5/8”, 1/2”, 3/8”, 5/16”, 1/4” and 1/8”. The acrylic is 1/8” inch thick and has the measurements etched into the corners along with the Stamp Junkies logo. The arms of the corners measure 4” on both sides.

     
✿ Karen ✿