ICAD 2016 DAY #2

Here is my ICAD day two card, I love it!  I think it is very pretty and bright.  I am in a bright mood this week. I used a Fisker's stamp set.  It is one of there larger stamp sets that has a full background stamp along with images you can use to build cards.  I actually used two stamps one that is a paisley stamp and the large flower stamp.

Here is a close up of the flower.

I created the colorful background first with Tombow markers and Perfect Pearls in a water bottle. I put some of the marker color on the packaging for my Stampin' Up Block size E.  The back of the box is larger than 3x5, which is perfect.  I sprayed my Perfect Pearls on the markers.  Then I swooshed and swirled the index card through the colors.  I did try to get the pink on one side, the teal in the middle and the purple on the other side.  This creates a nice colorful pearly shimmering background.  I then stamped the paisleys all over the background with Distress Ink Black Soot. 

I decided to really heavily stamp the paisleys close to each other, because I new I was going to cover a lot of the card.  I wanted the paisley image to still come through as paisley, plus it helped to cover any white spaces.  

Fun Fact: The Tombow Dual Point markers are watercolor markers.  They do not move around the same though as water color will when spritzed.  If you don't swoosh or drag your card through the markers it will not give you a smooth color, but the color will be more dotty.  Once I have a smooth mixed color, I will sometimes try to pick up some of those dots to add texture to the background.

I then stamped the flower onto watercolor paper with Memento Luxe Rich Cocoa. I love love this ink. It is a pigment ink that is designed to be used with Mixed Media.  I just think it is a wonderful brown that is a touch deeper than Sepia but still gives you a vintage feel.  You do need to let this ink dry for a few minutes, but then you can watercolor over it and it will not smear or move.  I then colored the flowers with Tombow markers.    

Tip:  If you have a large stamp that has small detail inside the middle of the stamp, I actually still put the stamp on a block but I then sit the block facing up on the table.  Then I put the watercolor paper down on top.  You can then rub your hand across the paper to get a really nice full detailed impression.

I know that some of the full petals didn't fill in all the way, but I actually liked that look.  I feel that it looks distressed.  I cut out the flowers leaving a border as if they were die cut.  I did this to help the flowers pop out from the background.  I used Stampin' Up min-glue dots for the flowers, but popped the middle one up with a Stampin' Up Dimensional.  

Lastly, I added some bling with sequins. I adhered all of the sequins with Stampin' UP mini-glue dots. The ones on the flower I have the sequins facing up like little cups.  The others I actually turned down, so they look a little more like enamel dots with sparkle.  

Here is a full list of supplies:

• Perfect Pearls
• Tombow Dual Tip Marker 373 (Teal)
• Tombow Dual Tip Marker  676 (Purple)
• Tombow Dual Tip Marker 985 (Yellow)
• Tombow Dual Tip Marker 725 (Hot Pink)
• Distress Ink -- Black Soot
• Memento Luxe -- Rich Cocoa
• Fisker's Stamp
• Stampin' Up Min Glue Dots
• Stampin' Up Dimensionals 
• Stampin' Up Clear Blocks in C and E

Happy Crafting!

ICAD 2016 DAY #1

Here is my first ICAD for the 2016 Challenge.  It came out very pretty and cheery!  I was feeling inspired by summer.  I love the bold colors.  The flamingo looks just right with it's glittery body. 

Here is a close look at the flamingo.  I wanted some of the background to come through the beautiful bright pink color.

Here is close up of the other side.

I love the over all look. I didn't want to get to fussy, so I only did a few techniques.  I think you really feel the good summer vibes with this one that makes me want to just sit on the beach and enjoy a nice summer day. 

Here are the supplies I used:

• Tombow Dual Point Tip Maker Number 873 (Pink)
• Tombow Dual Point Tip Maker Number 985 (Yellow)
• Tombow Dual Point Tip Maker Number 905 (Orange)
• Tombow Dual Point Tip Maker Number 725 (Hot Pink)
• Unity Stamp Co. Stamp of the Week Summer Citrus 
• Stampin' Up stamp set from Paper Pumpkin
• Stampin' Up Soft Suede Ink
• Lawn Fawn Gnome Sweet Home Stamp Set 
• Perfect Pearls (mixed in water in a spray bottle)
• Wink of Stella - Clear

That was easy,  Can't wait for day 2!

Happy Crafting!

Index Cards -- Check

Stamps --- Check

Markers and Paint --- Check

Excitement --- Check Check

I have decided to take this challenge this year and it starts tomorrow!  I am super excited.  I have been thinking about this challenge for the last month. I decided that I want to focus on creating little pieces of art with stamps.  

If you are not familiar with this challenge, you can get all the answers from Daisy Yellow's blog.  Here is a link to the FAQ page for the ICAD challenge.

Here is the skinny: ICAD stands for Index Card A Day.  The idea is to create small pieces of art each day on a index card for 61 days.  It is about creating everyday on an easy medium that is quick to grab.  You are suppose to focus on the act of creating more than on the creation itself. It helps you learn to live a life of creativity .  I am also using this as a challenge to update my blog everyday as well for 61 days!

I think it is a great way to start the "habit" of creating.  It is also a wonderful way to play with your supplies, learn your supplies, and think about using your supplies in ways you may not have done before.  Personally I have a habit of starting and stopping my crafting.  This stops my brain from thinking in a creative way, and can make it feel harder to start up again.  I want to break that habit.  I am going to focus on making something instead of making a perfect work of art. Hopefully at the end of July I will see how easy it is to be creative each day, and will feel more confident using my supplies.

I am giving myself one more rule for this challenge.  I must use at least one stamp on each index card.  I want to practice my stamping.  I also want to try and force myself to think about using my stamps in different ways. After 61 days I should get lot of use out of my stamps. 

Daisy Yellow also has prompts for each day/week of the challenge, in case you need some inspiration.  You can create what every you want each day, but she gives these prompts in case you are not sure how to start or how to continue.  I am going to look at them, but I am not going to restrict myself to just these prompts.  I do sometimes need a moment of inspiration, so I will check them out.  Here is a link to the icad index that has the prompts schedule near the bottom of the post.  

The prompts for the first week were posted on May 29, 2016.  

I hope you come back and check out my creations throughout the challenge. 

Happy Crafting!

Happy October!

October is finally here!  The days are shortening and the air is cooling here in the States.  Even better, October is the month of Halloween!  Yup that is right the whole month.  Time to dive into our chocolate and our Halloween crafting supplies.  I will admit I am pretty sure I have more Halloween stamps than any other stamps.  This season I had to order some more!  I just had to have two of the Halloween stamp sets from Stampin' Up.  Witches' Night and Sweet Hauntings were calling my name.  Click here to access the my Stampin' Up website to check out these fabulous stamps and much more.

I created these cute 3x3 Greeting Cards and storage box with the Sweet Hauntings stamp set, the Note Tag punch from Stampin' Up, and Doodlebug Halloween Parade paper. The owl sticker came from Michael's Recollection's collection that I purchased last year.  

Everyone has there own way of building greeting cards.  I like to start with a card blank when building my greeting cards by cutting and scoring white card stock. I prefer to only use white as my card blank, so that it is easy to right any messages you have for the recipient.  For this set of cards, I cut four 3x6" pieces of card stock.  I then scored them at 3" on the long side of the card.  I even stamped the Stampin' Up trademark on the back. I like to try and do all my stamping on the card blank before burnishing the fold.  I find it is easier to stamp that way.  I did leave what will be the inside of the card blank though, because these are small note cards.

Next I started to build the card top.  I very rarely do one layer cards straight on the card blank for two reasons.  First, I like to have layers that frame the main design.  I used two layers for this card along with some stamped and punched sentiments.  I felt this gave a nice effect and more professional look to the card.  Second,  if I make a mistake I have not wasted a large piece of paper.  There are always opportunists to fix or mask a mistake, but I feel more comfortable working on the separate smaller piece.  This has just become my preference after some trial and error.  

I also like to use tape runner instead of a wet glue.  I find it is quick, easy and doesn't warp the paper.  

I created these cards in two ways.  One way was to punch the note tag shape from the black layer that measures two and three quarters of an inch.  Then I attached the decorative paper (that measures 2x2 inches) layer to cove the black leaving a border around the edges. Finally I stamped one of the sentiments from the Sweet Hauntings stamp set that coordinates with the Note Tag Punch.  I also used a stamp that I had from the dollar bin at Michael's on a few of the punched note tags. I attached these sentiments on top of the layered piece.  

The other way was to punch the note tag out of the black on an angle.  Then adhered the the decorative paper underneath the black piece.  Then layered the stamped sentiment on top at an angle, as shown below.

I attached the layered pieces to the card blank, leaving some of the card blank exposed to create an additional border.  I created the top for the box very similarly.  I did stamp the card stock I used to create the box with the bottles in the Sweet Hauntings stamp set, to create my own tone on tone paper.  I love making this type of paper and is one of the reasons I joined Stampin' Up.  

Have a happy October everyone! 

Promises Promises...

In my last entry I stated that I was going to explain more about my greeting card creation philosophy and then didn't post again.  Eek! How could I do that to my precious crafting blog.  Well I don't want to give a lot of excuses, time just seemed to get a way from me.  During that time I have done something wonderful, I joined Stampin' Up! as an independent demonstrator.

I am extremely happy with my choice to join Stampin' Up.  I love there inks and paper.  The above picture is made from They do make stamping so easy and effortless.  You end up with great results every time increasing your satisfaction with your finished product.  What I didn't expect was to love some of the other products as much as I do.

The first surprise was the acrylic blocks used for the photopolymer stamps or unmounted rubber stamps.  They are awesome.  They have a weight to them that makes stamping easier because the weight helps the stamp make full contact to the paper giving you a good impression.  The blocks also have a ridge around them that makes them easy to hold, so you don't drop the block spreading ink in places you don't want or push the stamp in the wrong direction.  Plus the size range they come in are really great for the Stampin' Up stamps or even the other stamp you may have already.

The other product that was a surprise was the piercing mat.  This is actually one of the first things that I wanted to order from Stampin' Up, because I needed a piercing mat for some projects.  I found in the catalog and on some You Tube videos that you can use the mat to stamp on as well when you use photopolymer (clear) stamps.  Now I love photopolymer stamps (even before Stampin' Up), because it is easy to see when they are inked up and easy to see where you are stamping.  And boy where they right. The extra padding helps to make a crisp stronger impression when you stamp.  I might buy one more just for stamping. I tried using a mouse pad, which did help but not as much as these pads.  These pads are twice as thick and a bit cushier.

I am having so much fun with my new stamps and punches that I will be sharing my creations soon (and i won't lose track this time).  I have added a link at the right to my Stampin' Up website if you would like to see the items I have described or the other wonderful products offered by Stampin' Up.  Please contact me with any questions about Stampin' Up, products, or how to become a demonstrator.  My email address is on the Stampin' Up website, just click the Holiday catalog on the right.


Happy Crafting everyone with your favorite supplies!

Challenge!

As if crafting itself was not challening enough, we crafters love to challenge each other or be challenged by each other.  I decided to enter a challenge this month.  Above is my card for the Unity Be Inspired Challenge.  Unity Stamp Co. offers a monthly challenge.  Read more about the challenge on there blog here.

I decided to enter their challenge this month., because I needed some inspiration.  I often feel like I have a million ideas and then sit down to craft and all my ideas run away.  It is the empty paper syndrome.  One of the things I like about this challenge is that it is a sketch challenge.  They give you an idea!  How wonderful!

I had been thinking about what stamps I wanted to use and my background for a couple of days.  True to form, though, I went a completely different direction once I sat down to craft. The stamp I was first going to use was to large.  Oh no.  Even the stamp I went with was almost to large for a greeting card.  The full stamp is the middle image.  What I did was eliminate the birds when I stamped the flower my two additional times, by wiping the ink off the birds before stamping.  This made the image fit. I water colored the flowers and birds with a water pen and Distress Markers. I decided to fussy cut the images as if they are die cuts leaving a little bit of white around the image.  There was some little details that would have been to hard to cut out without leaving the white border.  I feel the faux die cut helps give this card a whimsical appeal.

When I cut the images out, the paper was still a little wet.  I was able to shape the flowers which added some dimension to the images.  I popped the middle flower up with pop dots.  I wanted the middle flower and birds to be the focal point of this card.

I really enjoyed making this card. Card making is also a wonderful way to battle crafting ADD.  Just like artist trading cards, greeting cards offer a small canvas in which to create.  You use a many or as few techniques as you like on each card.  They are great for practicing new techniques also. I have much more to say about greeting cards, as you will see in the coming weeks.

I hope you enjoyed the card!

Crafting ADD

I enjoy crafting and yet I often feel there is something holding me back.  I don't always feel as fulfilled with my efforts.  I wondered about this for awhile and why I felt this way.  Was it because I didn't really know how to get the look I want on a project? Did my efforts look to "home made"? Am I not really a crafter at heart? Or could it be something else?   I think I figured out one of my issues. I have Crafting ADD!

I am very good about starting new projects but not as great at finishing them.  The bigger or more time intensive the less likely it is to get finished for awhile (if at all).  I start a project with high hopes and high energy.  About midway through though I can feel my brain start to think about other crafting creations I can make, sometimes with the same supplies I am using right at that moment.  Before I know it another project has been born and the old project is pushed aside.  When I have just one too many projects started I will buckle down and finish a half project.

When I am done I am very happy with the results. I kick myself for not sticking with the original project.  It could have been done and enjoyed instead of sitting and gathering dust.  How can I cure myself of this condition or am I just stuck this way? You know there is just to much to do and try and just not enough time in the day.  That is what I thought for a while but then I found ATCs!

Wonderful little ATCs allow me to feel that great feeling of accomplishment that fuels me on to my next project.

If you are new to the crafting world ATC stands for Artist Trading Cards.  They are 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 cards that you can do any technique on.  You can draw, paint, stamp, emboss, paper piece, watercolor, zentangle, etc.  Everything your heart can think of you can do.  The best part is they are small! You can put at much time and effort into them as you want.  Traditionally they are used for trying new techniques and are often swapped between artists or crafters.  Some people also use them as a calling cards to showcase their artwork.

I typically use them as a practice space.  I can try out different techniques or color combinations.  I can practice stamping with new stamps or inks. I also like that you can buy or create cards out of any paper material that strikes your fancy.  I bought a pack that had a variety of papers.  I found some that I liked and some that I did not care to use again.

The best part though is I can make an ATC quickly and I have a sense of fulfillment.  It gives me the encouragement to move on to my next project.  It also taught me to think about my projects in smaller bits.  If you feel like you can't get a larger project finished, try breaking it down into to smaller bits.  Once you have one small piece of your project done you will be excited to move to the next part, instead of feeling overwhelmed or bored.

Here is an ATC I created this weekend.

I used Strathmore Canvas paper.  The stamps I used was from Unity Stamp Company Stamp of the Week called Change is Never Easy.  I stamped multiple times with multiple different pressures to add depth and interest to the over all image.  The ink I used is Memento Luxe Rich Cocoa. I love that color!  The brown is rich but not to dark.  I think it has a very nice vintage feel.  I colored the image with Distress Markers Fossilized Amber, Twisted Citron, and Cracked Pistachio (all new colors for 2015). I love how these colors blended with each other.  I simply put down a little color with the brush tip and then used a water pen to spread the color around trying to keep some darker areas.  The markers really moved very well on the canvas paper.  When I was done coloring the pieces, I popped up the sentiment on torn black card stock.  I then cut a piece of 3x4 black card stock to mount the ATC.  It is beautiful with really nice texture from the canvas paper!

You will be seeing more ATCs from me on this blog!

Let me know how you over come Crafting ADD!