Magenta Stamps Birthday Card

We are experiencing some effects of the Nor'eastern storm that is hitting the east coast.  Since last night we have had blustery, windy, snow, with accumulations expected to be 20 inches by tomorrow evening.  Good weather to stay indoors and stay warm.  

To that end, I am spending much of the day in my craft room, playing with my stamping tools and making cards.  

Stamp:  Magenta Stamps floral panel
Die:  Simon Says Stamp Happy Birthday die
Embossing plate:  Cuttlebug birthday background.
Other:  Prismacolor colored pencils, The Paper Studio fibers, Tim Holtz distress inks, Clarity stamps stencil brush.
A peak at the fibers card.  I love this stuff, and always forget to use it.  I think you will be seeing more of this now that it has surfaced from my 'stash.'  

I am keeping it simple with this card.  I stamped the panel onto Strathmore vellum bristol with antique linen distress ink, then used the colored pencils to color it.  On the A2 white card panel, I embossed an area slightly larger than the panel.  To do this, I cut a piece of heavy cardboard (the back of a used watercolor pad) slightly larger than the panel, taped it onto the front of the card, turned it over and ran my embossing tool along the outer edge, creating the recessed area for the panel.  I attached the panel with craft foam.  

I cut the birthday word from the embossed panel, brushed a light coat of ink over it with my stencil brush, and attached it to the card front with foam mounting tape.  

I ran the brush with some ink over the 'happy' die with my Clarity brush, giving it an ombre look, and attached it to the card with my Quicky Glue glue pen.  The fringe at the bottom was attached with two sided tape.

I am adding my card to the The Daily Marker 30 day color challenge, and also to these challenges:

The Flower Challenge - Anything goes 

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge  - For a special lady/girl

Stampin Royalty Challenge - Spring

As I look out the window, the snow is accumulating at a quick pace, and visibility is very poor.  Prayers for those who have to drive home from work today, and especially for those who are still without power from our last week's wind storm, which caused widespread power outages and severe damage.

Thank you for visiting.  

Blessings,

lynda

 

Color Challenge Card Day 30

My last card for the 30 Day Color Challenge at The Daily Marker.  I was distressed last night when I checked the Daily Marker challenge.  The linky was closed, and it was only 10:30 PM!  I didn't get to post my final card for the challenge.  Boo hoo.    And, the winners have all been announced, so be sure to check them out and leave some love.  Sadly, I was not one of them.  Not surprising, as there were literally hundreds of entries, and selection was random drawing.  But it was fun, and I would consider doing it again...after a while.  I need a little reprieve right now.

I am also entering this card in the Casology blog challenge here.   The theme of that challenge is SPRING.  

I find it challenging doing clean and simple cards.  Everything in me screamed to add more embellishments, at least a ribbon.  But I settled on three little pearl embellishments.

For the image (Hero Arts, I think) on the black panel, I stamped in white Colorbox pigment ink, and let it dry.  OK, so I didn't let it dry on its own...I hit it with the heat tool to dry it quickly!  Sometimes creativity just can't wait!  Then I just colored over the white areas with colored pencil.  I love the way this looks on the black..it just pops.

The sentiment is from a phrase set (Hampton) that I just picked up a couple of days ago.  I love the scripts and phrases on this set.

Off to make my sausage breads for Easter, and then off to Good Friday service at church this afternoon.  

I will post my Easter card on my Tangled In The Word blog on Sunday.  I will be celebrating with my family, so will have the post ready to go, and can just hit the 'send' button.  Tangled In The Word is my other blog, where I post my Zentangle art, and blog about God's Word.  I love combining my brain's right side creativity with the Word.  

Blessings,

     lynda

Blessings,

     lynda

Color Challenge Day 25 Card

I decided to go with colored pencils today for the 30 Day Color Challenge on The Daily Marker .  I use Berol Prismacolor pencils, because they have a really nice lead that lays down beautifully.  Also, they have a nice range of colors.

These stamps are from my older collections.  I believe they are from Ann-ticipations.  I love how cute these little mice are.

 I hope you are enjoying your weekend.  It was a cold day here, but there is a promise of warmer weather, more spring-like, in the forecast for next week!

Five more days of the color challenge to go!  This will be a busy week, with it being Holy Week, and getting things ready for Easter.  I may have to make an extra card for a couple of days, and then just have to post it on the appropriate day, especially for Thursday and Friday, as we will be at church for a while on those days.  And I've got some breads to make and cooking to do.  And two very special Easter baskets for two VERY special little girls!

Thanks for stopping by.

Blessings,
     lynda

Day 21 Color Challenge Card and Magenta Challenge

Just a quick post to get this up before bed.  I used colored pencil on this Magenta stamp.  The background was done with distress inks and watercolor.  I am entering this card in the Defi/Challenge Magenta , where the theme is Nature.  It is also card 21 of the 30 Day Color Challenge at The Daily Marker.

Thanks for visiting.  See you tomorrow!
Blessings,
lynda

Cling Rubber Stamps - Why I Love Them

I won $100 worth of Hero Arts products from a contest I entered a few weeks ago.  One of the stamps I selected is this new cling stamp, (CG115 Thank You).

I have been having so much fun with it, and discovering it's versatility. But, before I go further, let me tell you how wonderful Hero Arts cling stamps are! They are etched very deeply, so the image stamps beautifully. They cling to the acrylic easily, and unlike many cling stamps, they have an index on the top, so you can see the design through the acrylic mount.  If you have ever used cling stamps, you know how great that feature is!

For those who have never used, or heard of, cling stamps, I'll provide some information to help you understand what they are.  Cling stamps are regular rubber stamps, except instead of being mounted to wood,  the adhesive side of the foam mount is attached to a piece of cling vinyl. This allows your rubber image to be used with acrylic handle mounts,  as you would with clear acrylic stamps.  The image is sandwiched between the vinyl and the foam so that it cannot be washed, rubbed or worn off. You can use Cling Rubber stamps with any kind of ink you'd normally use with your wood- mounted stamps. They clean the same way, too.  To use, simply press it to an acrylic mount, ink, and stamp!

Some advantages of cling stamps:

• Same quality as wood mounted rubber stamps, because they are rubber.
• Closely trimmed rubber and cushion allows you to see where you are stamping, allowing for precise positioning.
• Lightweight and easy to transport, taking up very little space.
• Storage - Simply attach onto a smooth surface, and file in a magazine holder or three ring binder.
• More cost efficient than wood mounted stamps. 

Now, back to my Hero Arts Thank You Frame Stamp.  I have so many ideas I want to try with it, and will be posting some of them as I make some cards with it.  

The frame begs to be cut out, the flowers layered and mounted.  The Thank You in the center can be eliminated by simply not inking it, or, cutting out the inside before mounting.In this 8" x 8" scrapbook layout, I stamped it in black ink onto white cardstock, three times. I cut out the entire image, and mounted it to scrapbook paper. I then cut out the flowers twice, the first time around the outside of the flower, and the second cut was the inside petals of the flower.  
After coloring with colored pencils, I layered them onto the frame with foam tape.  Some gem stones and Stardust clear gel pen added the finishing touches.  The stamping along the bottom of the page was done with pink ink using another Hero stamp (K5232 Dot Flourish Border).  Although this is a wood mounted stamp, I just had to have it. It is perfect for borders, but, oh, so much more!

I still need to add my journaling, and perhaps a picture, and then it will go into a special 8 x 8 album I'm making for my daughter, Faith, for her birthday in December.
Soon I will post the secret to blending the colored pencil I used on the frame and flowers.  Check my next post later this week.
Blessings,
     lynda