Just Add Ink 732: just add a sketch

Hi everyone and it's time for another "fun" sketch with the Just Add Ink crew and I say fun with clenched teeth as I personally never find sketches fun and require thinking outside the box. Today's sketch is no different and I have been KReative and decided the sketch reminded me of mountain tops and as I still need more Christmas cards I've combined those 2 elements to create a fun card which I know the recipient will love.

Now don't ask me why I decided I would do a no line Copic colouring of such tiny critters but I ended up restamping over the images again with the pale grey ink I was using on the car (Jellyfish) and changed up the presents and animals to a light brown (Crunchy Leaf) as they had lost a lot of definition and then die cut them out. 

I also added a frame as I grabbed the wrong die to cut out a panel with a stitched edge to my Ranger Heavy card stock for blending; I had grabbed a stitched rectangle frame die instead of the stitched rectangle die. As the heavy card stock which is great to blend on is too expensive to waste I just blended on the cut out piece and popped the "frame" up with foam strips. I actually think this was a great mistake, I love the frame, it's almost like a window. 

There's a lot of sparkle and shine on the card from the Pixie dust mountain tops, Distress rock candy glitter border edge and Frost Shimmer spritzed over my ink blended sky, plus Prisma glitter added to the bows etc.

Supply List:

Stamps: Car Critters (LF), Car Critters Christmas Add-on (LF), Over the Mountains (LF), Holiday Helpers (LF)
Ink: Salvaged Patina distress oxide (RNG), Shaded Lilac (RNG), Watermelon (C9), Jellyfish (LF), Crunchy Leaf (LF), Versafine Clair Nocturne

Paper: Vellum (LF), Pixie dust sparkle (LF), Distress Heavy (RNG), Neenah Solar white

Dies: Stitched Mountain borders (LF), Stitched Hillside borders (LF), Stitched Rectangle Frames (LF)

Other: Copics, blending brushes, Glossy Accents (RNG), Distress Rock Candy glitter (RNG), Prisma glitter (LF), Quickie glue pen (Sakura), white Gelli roll pen (Sakura), Black glaze pen (Sakura), foam strips and squares, Frost shimmer spray (imagine crafts)

Challenge: JAI#732

This is my last Design Team card for 2024 and I'm going to spend my time entering challenges and making a few more cards and tags for Christmas. I sincerely hope everyone has a "very Merry Christmas", thanks for supporting my blog and the Just Add Ink challenges and I hope to catch you all in 2025 and hopefully you can squeeze in one more challenge too and join in with the sketch challenge as well. If time is tight do check out what clever ideas the design team came up with for this sketch.

✿Karen✿

AAA Card Challenge 279: last challenge for this year

Wow were did 2024 go, it's the last challenge for 2024 for AAA Cards and to finish off we have a sketch, which you might know by now I do not like sketches and this one was no exception. 

This year we have alternated sketches at AAA Cards with "an anything goes CAS with an optional twist". In 2025 Maaike has some interesting challenges lined up and we have different themes which I'm really excited about, we also only get a sketch challenge every 4th challenge - that I am even more excited about!

Anyhow onto the last challenge of the year which I actually had a few ideas for so maybe I am "getting better at them." In reality making my card was the easy bit, photographing and showing how shimmery was the hard bit!

I've flipped the sketch on it's side and ink blended through a rectangle mask stencil (TE) a dark night sky using Distress Oxides: Picked Raspberry, Blueprint Sketch, Villainous Potion and then Black Soot around all the edges but darker at the top. I then added some hot foiled fireworks as thought it would be fun to make a Happy New Year Card especially as this challenge is for a month and finishes on January 4th 2025.

Supply List:
Stamps: Merry Messages (LF)
Ink: Versafine Clair Glamorous; Picked Raspberry, Blueprint Sketch, Villainous Potion, Black Soot Distress Oxides (RNG)

Paper: Hammermill, Neenah Solar white #110, Basic Black (SU!)

Other: Fireworks Hot Foil plates and dies (LF), Rainbow Glimmer foil (SP), Glimmer machine (SP), Rectangles masking stencil (TE), blending brushes (TE), Frost Shimmer spray (imagine crafts)

Challenge: AAA#280

Well I hope you can rise to the challenge and have a go at the sketch, this time you have FOUR WEEKS to play along with us. The Design Team have some great inspiration to get you started, so do check them all out. 

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone that plays along with us at AAA Card Challenges, without you we wouldn't have a challenge blog. I hope everyone has a magical and festive season however you celebrate it and my sincere best wishes for a Happy New Year.

✿Karen✿

Mantle Village with Tic Tac Toe

Hi everyone we have a new Tic Tac Toe challenge board to play along with and I thought I would play with my new to me Mantle Village dies. I only bought the houses and trees but now wishing I also bought the accessory dies to hang under the mantle but I'm really happy how it all turned out. I used the picture on the die packet to colour up my images and also added Distress inks to darker the card stock and shimmer sprays to make "shimmery". I've used an embossing folder to add embossing and to also add "snowflakes" which was one of the criteria. I've used a die set from Newton's Nook to cut out my panels on the card.

The line I chose was the middle horizontal line: gems, dry embossing, snowflakes.

I'm also going to play along with Time Out Challenges "Happy Holidays" Challenge. Also Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge is to add some blue.

Supply List:
Stamps: Whimsical Trees (SU! - sentiment)
Dies: Mantle Village (SP), Frames & Flags (NN), Everyday Sentiment Banners (LF)
Ink: Cranberry (C9), various Distress inks to darken or shadow the card stock
Paper: Knit Picky 6x6" DSP (LF), Sahara Sand (SU!), Crumb Cake (SU!), Lemon Lolly (SU!), red, blue and green are all scraps of Spellbinder card stock
Other: Wintry 3D embossing folder (SU!), Gems: clear with gold dust (PFS), stamping foam 2mm, shimmer sprays

Challenge: TTTC#262, TOC#278, SSS Wednesday

I do love the sentiment on the stamp set and I sincerely hope "that the love of the season, warms your home and fills your heart".

Thanks for popping in and I hope you have time to play along with TTTC gang, if you're like me you are still making cards for Christmas as I never seem to have enough. If I'm honest I just like to share and give away as many as I can at this time of the year. This appears to be the last challenge for 2024 from Tic Tac Toe Challenges, so I'd like to personally thank everyone for supporting our challenge site and I look forward to catching up with you all in 2025. 

✿Karen✿

Just Add Ink 730: just add fruit

What a fun challenge at Just Add Ink this week, there are so many fruits one can add to a card, which is why I ask myself why am I still trying to decide two days before my DT card is due which one to use!! As I have procrastinated so long I decided I would take the easy route out and use up some left over lemons I had watercoloured for another card which you can see HERE.

After that it was pretty easy I had the wee sentiment already white heat embossed and the thanks die-cut was also sitting with the die. The other cool thing about my card is all the papers are "fruit-inspired" in their naming.

Supply List:

Stamps: You're the Zest (LF)

Ink: Versafine Clair Nocturne, Versamark

Paper: Lemon Lolly (SU!), Granny Apple Green (SU!), Melon Mambo (SU!), Fruit Salad 6x6" DSP (LF), Distress watercolor (RNG), Basic Black (SU!), Neenah Solar White

Dies: Thanks Jotted Script (Memory Box), Sunflower Greetings (LF: I've used the wee scalloped rectangle)

Other: Foam strips and squares (2mm), ZIG Real Color brush markers, white Gelli roll no. 10 (Sakura), Alabaster white embossing powder (BM)
Challenge: JAI730

Well I hope you can join in with the fun, Summer is definitely hitting us down under so lots of fresh fruit to enjoy IRL too :)

✿Karen✿

CAS Christmas Card Inspired by Therese for AAA Card Challenge 279

Hi everyone its time for another anything CAS challenge with AAA Cards and this week the optional topper is Christmas/Winter. Living down under it's definitely not Winter as we head into Summer and I always need one more Christmas card, so Christmas topper for me.

Looking at my Christmas sets I decided I would play with one of my oldest sets called Santa's Elves by My Favorite Things as it was known back then. It's so old the die is solid and when I first started working with these dies I got really really frustrated until some kind person suggested I die cut out a blank shape and then use that to line up my die and that works fine. Today I've made it even trickier as I have been inspired by a set of cards Therese Calvird from Lost in Paper created using this set which you can see HERE. So as well as trimming close to the image I then had to put a solid die on top and line up my Big Shot's top plate to cut out at the line. 

I only  Copic coloured my image once I knew I was successful. Like Therese, I also added some stripes to the cap as I thought that looked really fun, I used minty greens and strawberry pink tones for my colouring. Copics used: G00/02/05; RV13/13/21; E000/00/11/13; N0/2/4. I then added some Stickles, when dry I added my wee panel to the front of an A2 card base using foam strips, you could add directly but it's kind of fun it's "floating". To be honest if you didn't pop up with foam you could stamp and colour directly to an A2 panel and attach to your card base to hide the bleed from the alcohol markers.

Supply List:

Stamps: Santa's Elves (MFT)

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Versafine Clair Nocturne

Paper: Neenah Solar White #80 and #110

Other: Copics, Diamond Stickles (RNG), Black glaze pen (Sakura), Gelli roll 10 (Sakura), Sharpie pen. foam strips

Challenges: AAA#279

Gosh this was a quick and effective CAS card and Therese has lots of great ideas, so do check out the link to her above, this design would work for so many images. I hope you can find time to join in with us this week. Thanks for popping in.

✿Karen✿

Just Add Ink 728: Just Choose Two

Hi everyone and time for another fun and fab challenge with the Just Add Ink team and this week we have an easy challenge to choose two from: pens or pencils or patterned paper. I chose to play along with Pens and Patterned Paper.

I'd seen a few examples of a simple corner fold using DSP which looked to me quick and easy and quite effective. This design is great for creating a lot of cards quickly. I've used an A2 card base and then just made all my mats 1/4" smaller, i.e. white mat is 4" x 5-1/4" and the DSP mat is 3-3/4" x 5".

I've used a really old DSP in my stash as it's good to actually use some of it up and not admire from afar. The original colours that coordinated with my DSP were Lost Lagoon and Pear Pizzazz (both SU!). I've used C9's Tidepool as my Lost Lagoon alternative.

I've used Copic markers to colour up my image as listed below (darkest > lightest), in case you are wondering why the additions of Toners Greys to my blend, SU! colours have a lot of grey in them which is the main reason I personally have moved away from using their inks:
Red toboggan and hat: R27/24/22

Teal scarf: T1 then BG72

Bright green scarf: YG03/01 then T0

Pom poms: C3/1

Bear: E33/31/01 R20
Bunny: E43/42/40 R20

Supply List:
Stamps: Snow One Like You (LF), Merry Messages (LF)

Ink: Tidepool (C9), Poppy (C9), Memento Tuxedo Black
Paper: All is Calm Specialty DSP (SU!), Tidepool (C9), Poppy Parade (SU!), Neenah Solar White

Dies: Spotlight on Nature (SU!)

Other: Copic Markers, Quickie glue pen (Sakura), Prisma glitter (LF), Black glaze pen (Sakura), White Gelli roll pen #8 (Sakura), 1mm and 2mm foam squares (SP)
Challenge: JAI#728

Yah another card for my Christmas stash, how do you create cards for Christmas - do you make one design and bulk make or are you like me and make all through the year so everyone gets a card that I feel suits them. If you do bulk make this is a really effective design and easy to recreate.

I hope you can find time to choose TWO and play along with us this week.

Thanks for popping in.

✿Karen✿

More Cheesy Christmas

Hi everyone I blogged the other day HERE about the so cute and fab Christmas cards I recreated at the Create with Us class with Lawn Fawn. The day after that class Jenn Shurkus was offering a paid class, I tweaked the cards quite a bit to make them "more me" as I do like my CAS and "white space" on a card. 

These are my fab 3 cards I KReated and I've commented what I've done differently from "Jenn's".

Card one: I liked Jenn's concept of making a background piece using Candy Canes stencil with pink inks but I added a glitter paste to stencil 2 as well. I also used my woodgrain card stock to make a window as I don't own Build-a-Christmas Tree die so was just working with the stamped cheese tree for all my cards. I went with pink and lime green tones for this card as lime green is my fav colour.

Card two: I left the front of the card plain white and used a pastel pink glitter paper for my Winter Wonderland Window. I also think (unlike Lawn Fawn staff etc.) we work with the 6"x 6" DSP (as that is easy to buy) which is littler and cuter but "also more busy" as everything condensed. I just found the concept of 2 busy DSPs to be too much IMO which is why I didn't add a 2nd DSP.

Card three: I still worked with Ballet Slipper and Guava card stocks but used a piece of left over DSP from yesterdays class for my "floor" and then used a coverplate die to add more white with just a hint of guava and also no multi-coloured candy cane background.

I love all 3 cards and am very happy to have been inspired by Jenn to keep KReating with this stamp set. I'm also going to enter CARD ONE into the latest Lawn Fawnatics challenge as my card is sufficiently different from Jenn's, I feel I can call it my own design.

 I'll list the additional items I used which are not part of Jenn's supply list for this class:

Stamps: Ho-ho-holidays (LF - extra present on card 2)
Inks: do-si-do (CP - my pink ink for stenciling), Watermelon (C9 - used for sentiment in card 3)
Paper: Woodgrain - light brown (LF), delicate pastel glitter pad (Memory Box)

Dies: Frames & Flags (NN), Outside-in stitched rectangle (LF), Itsy bitsy polka dot backdrop (LF)

Thanks for popping in and have a mice day!

✿Karen✿

AAA Card Challenge 278: Sketch time again

I decided it was time I broke out my Waffle Flower Postal Collage die and matching stencils to play along with the latest sketch at AAA Cards. I fell in love with these when they were first released and have been slowly collecting all sorts of sets but until today I haven't actually used them. Now I have I'm kicking myself for waiting so long, gosh they are super fun!!! I'll also enter my card into the current SSS Instagram challenge to make a Holiday-themed project as well and Inkspirational Challenge to "layer it".

To play along with the sketch I've used the small square in the top left hand corner of the die 3 times, using 2 different stencil sets, one image (the reindeer) I had to mask of 2 of the edges as it is supposed to be stenciled into a bigger square. I've tried to only stick to a few colours so it wasn't too busy but have added some stencil paste to 2 of the images the gold looks amazing IRL and my photography hints at it's glory; the Stardust Butter snow is subtle but quite sparkly IRL too.

Supply List:
Stamps: Postal Collage (WF), Holiday Large Sentiments (PFS)

Ink: Cherry Blossom (PFS), Peony (PFS), Apricot (PFS), Mint (PFS), Warm Buff (PFS), Gathered Twigs (PFS), Versafine Clair Nocturne
Stencils: Postal Collage Snowman (WF), Postal Collage Christmas (WF)

Dies: Postal Collage (WF)

Other: Moonlight Gold Luna paste (Cosmic Shimmer), Opalescent Stardust Butter (TCW), blending brushes

Challenges: AAA#278, SSS IG Challenge, Inkspirational #328

Well I hope you can find time to join in with all of us at AAA Cards, maybe whip out a Christmas card too, as gosh it is approaching fast.

Thanks for popping in.
✿Karen✿

Cheesy Christmas

This is the name of the latest Lawn Fawn stamp set for Christmas 2024, it's also the name for the latest Lawn Fawn Create with Us fun and free class.

These classes are great they provide written instructions and colouring guides as a PDF and the class is live on YouTube. If you can't make the Live the videos and PDF for class will remain available for us to use afterwards. 

You can recreate the cards or play along with something similar. I have to admit I had everything that was being used for this class and the cards are just adorable!!

The supply list can be found in the link above; the only substitution from the guide is I used Poppy card stock (C9) as my red card, but everything else is identical.

It was a really "cheesy" weekend as today Jenn Shurkus offered a follow-up paid class which I had instantly signed up for. I'll blog about that class another day as I went quite rogue and swapped quite a lot of stuff around but here's a sneak peek of my cards all together.

I can't believe how cute these cards are in real life plus how many little details and dimension my poor photography skills don't reveal.

✿Karen✿

Loads of Joy with Tic Tac Toe

Hello and welcome to another fab Tic Tac Toe challenge and this week the board has been chosen by Vicky and I had so many possibilities looking at it but I had to go with the left hand vertical row as it contained 3 of my favourite things to do on a card: ink blending, CAS and die cut. I could also have chosen the top line: ink blending, snow and tree; as well as diagonal from top left hand corner: ink blending, foliage and festive sentiment.

I'm also going to play along with Simon Says Stamp Instagram Challenge for November wanting Holiday-themed projects.

To KReate my card I blended a sky with three Distress inks; Picked Raspberry, Seedless Preserves and Chipped Sapphire on Distress Heavy white cardstock. I sprayed the background with a shimmer spray to create some "snow" but ended up with some big blobs which I did not like so have added a few dots with a very fine paintbrush.

I've used my Copics to colour up the scene and tried to only use a few colours to keep it as clean as possible. I've used RVs to work with my sky. Colours used follow (darkest > lightest):

Presents and hat: RV19/17/55

Trees and presents: YG17/25/21 E13
Greys: N8/6/4/2/0

Yellow: YR12/21/20
Snow: B000

Other Supplies Used:
Stamps: Loads of Joy (MFT)
Ink: Versafine Clair Nocturne - sentiment, Memento Tuxedo Black - images

Paper: Neenah White, Sahara Sand (SU!), Distress Heavy white (RNG)

Dies: Sweet Stacks: Circles (HB), Stitched Hillside border (LF), the cool wee rail track is part of the dies included with the Loads of Joy set (MFT)

Other: Prismaglitter (LF), blending brushes (TE), clear embossing powder, Quickie glue pen (Sakura), Frost shimmer spray (imaginecrafts)

Challenges: TTTC#260, SSS IG Challenge

I hope you can find time to play along with us at Tic Tac Toe Challenges team this week, we'd love to see what you create with any line; remember it can be horizontal, diagonal, vertical; there are so many possibilities

✿Karen✿

Just Add Ink 726: be inspired

It's time for another fun challenge at Just Add Ink and this week we have an inspirational mood board to inspire you.

Pic credit: https://ar.pinterest.com/pin/241575967501293188/

What do you see when you look at the mood board? I saw terracotta/apricot and sage greens plus the wee ginger kitten stole my heart. So I have ended up working with different greens than I normally would, which was actually quite a lot of fun. I'm sure I'm not the only person who gets stuck in the same rut and would normally work with bright yellow-greens to craft with. I've also added a wee kitty as well - one ginger and a wee grey tabby one, representing my fur baby Cinder.

I started by lightly blending some Shabby Shutters Distress Oxide ink in the top left hand corner. I then used a Leafy Background stencil (PFS), which is a set of 3 stencils to add Cracked Pistachio, Evergreen Bough and Lucky Clover. 

I have Copic coloured up Newton's Blooms (NN) and tried to only colour with Apricot/Terracotta/Sage green tones. 

Copics used:

Ginger kitty: Y38 YR21/20 E000 R32/30

Grey kitty: W6/4/2 R32/30
Terracotta pot:  E19 YR27/24
Green leaves/grass/ pot: G85/82

Apricot flowers: Y38  YR02/61/20

White flowers: Y38 BG000
Bee: Y38 YR27 BG000

Well I sincerely hope you have a purr-fect day and you can find some time to play along with us. Do check out the fab inspiration from the Just Add Ink team, we'd love to see what inspired you.

Thanks for popping in.

ISO a feather!

Gosh Seize the Birthday's latest topper is a bit of a hard one, to use a feather on a birthday card! 

Personally I think of feathers with dream catchers and slightly bohemian, I had to search really hard to find a feather in my stash. And yes I could have just used a bird I'm sure but the challenge topper was feather. I found 2; the one I used and a really large Lavinia feather. I decided to go with the AALL and Create stamp set Butterfly Effect #990 and attempt to make a mixed media card .

Below is my second go at creating what I had envisaged. I started of with my background but the first time I added the feather first then masked it and realised when I went to "pop it into the watering can" I should have masked the watering can which is why attempt 2 is posted. I actually think now I would stamp the watering can then mask it totally before creating the background. 

To create the background I swiped Lost Shadow ink vertically and then ink blended Spun Sugar through the stencil. I have stamped off the wee words in the set at least 3x in Morning Mist and Saltwater Taffy ink.

It's very subtle but I have added gold pigment ink to the edge plus splattered some Gold Wink of Stella wee droplets around as well as adding some gold highlights to the butterfly and feather with the brush as well. I have used my Distress watercolor pencils to colour up the images and then fussy cut out (or should that be fussy cussed whilst cutting them out).

Supply List:

Stamps: Butterfly Effect #990 (AALL), Watering Can #437 (AALL), Notes of Nature (SU!)

Versafine Clair Ink: Acorn, Morning Mist
Distress Oxides (RNG): Spun Sugar, Saltwater Taffy, Lost Shadow, Hickory Smoke, Scorched Timber
Distress Water Pencils (RNG): Worn Lipstick, Abandoned Coral, Twisted Citron. Mermaid Lagoon, Hickory Smoke, Lost Shadow

Paper: Smooth and Multifarious (LAV), Honeysuckle (C9), Neenah Solar White #110

Other: Glory stencil (LAV), Gold Wink of Stella glitter brush, Masking Magic (GKD), Golden Glitz pigment ink (Delicata - Tsunikedo), Pixie Dust: Ombre glitter drops (PFS), A2 Layers die (WF), 2mm square foam (SP), clear embossing power

Challenges: STB#294

Well that's my idea of using a feather on a card - hide it in the watering can behind the wee bunch of "lupins" ;) 

I did have a lot of fun creating my card and my crafty space looks like a bomb has been released, so a "good challenge" to play along with.

✿Karen✿

AAA Card Challenge 277: Trick or Treat time

It's time for an anything CAS goes challenge at AAA Cards with the optional twist of Halloween. I love playing along with the twist to get me started.

I can see Halloween is just around the corner as lots of Halloween challenges to play along with at the moment. So I'm also going to play along with Addicted to CAS's Halloween challenge;  Inkspirational Challenge's SEASONAL challenge and  Simon Say Stamp Monday Challenge which is Spooky and/or add some purple.

My card is pretty easy to recreate; I've masked off a strip to do my ink blending directly to a Neenah White A2 Base card then added a delightful wee fox dressed up trick and treating. I've die cut out 2 extra foxes to pop up my Copic coloured one for a tad of dimension.

Supply List:

Distress inks (RNG): Squeezed Lemonade, Dried Marigold, Wilted Violet
Stamps: Frightfully Sweet (MFT), Good Greetings (SU!)

Other: Frost Sheer Shimmer Craft spray (imaginecrafts), Masking magic (GKD), blending brushes (TE), Copic markers, Black glaze pen (Sakura), white gelli roll pen (Sakura), Versafine Clair Nocturne inkpad
Challenges: AAA #277, ATC#270, Inkspirational#327, SSS Monday Challenge

Copics Used (darkest > lightest):

Fox: E19 YR27/24 E51/50 R30/20

Cloak: V09/06/04/00

Pumpkin: YR68/15/21

Thanks for popping in and I hope you can find time to join in with us at AAA Cards this week, as always you have 2 weeks to play along.

I also wish everyone a Happy Halloween how ever you celebrate it, I know my grandkiddies are looking forward to dressing up and getting lollies on Thursday night.

EDITED 14/11/24: Very happy to see my card was the CAS Perfectionist at Addicted to CAS

✿Karen✿