Birthday Berries

Good morning, peeps!  It's a lovely, sunny day, albeit frigid!  Church was a bit sparse this morning.  I suspect many people didn't want to brave the cold.  The sunshine this morning gave me a much needed boost.  I came home and immediately got into my 'comfy, not for public' clothes.  Short of pj's, there's nothing better.  

So, first things first, I wanted to get this blog post done, then it's up to my art studio to create some more.  Today's card features an awesome stamp from Penny Black.  Actually two stamps:  berry kissed 40-492, and special thoughts clear set 30-338.

I used my Misti and some Strathmore bristol smooth paper to stamp and watercolor the berry branch.  My technique is to ink the stamp in my Misti with a very light color.  Usually I use antique linen in the Tim Holtz distress inks.  Next, I use distress mini ink pads and/or markers to 'ink' up the various areas.  After inking, I use a watercolor brush and a little water to paint the areas, and add details and highlights.  I repeat stamping and watercoloring several times until I get the look I'm going for.  

When dry, I use my Faber Castell polychromos colored pencils to add the final details, such as deep shadows and stronger highlights.

The spatters are made with FineTec gold paints, flicked on with a brush.  The verse is embossed with Ranger gold embossing powder, as is the panel along the left edge.  
Here's a close-up of the spatters and coloring details....

Challenges:

Penny Black At Allsorts  - Something new (berry stamp)

Penny Black Saturday Challenge  - Anything goes!

Allsorts Challenge - No patterned papers

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Winter blues
 
I hope you are able to relax today, and spend some quiet time, reading or doing what you love.  Or go out and enjoy the sunshine.  Whatever your 'thing' is, make some time to refresh your spirit.  

Blessings,

Thinking of You Card - Hero Arts

I challenged myself today to use a stamp that I have had for quite a while and have never used.  This peacock stamp from Hero Arts was just what I needed for the challenge at Less Is More Challenge 
where the theme is Exotic.  I figure a peacock is pretty exotic, yes?
What could be more exotic than an animal with all the iridescent hues of blues and greens of the peacock tail?  

Now, this stamp is one of those negative stamps, where the design is actually etched out of the background, so I couldn't actually color in the tail feathers.

I chose to ink the stamp in TH distress inks in shades of blue, for the Sunday Stamps shades of blue challenge.  I used blue crystals on the tail feathers, and the Spectrum Noir clear glitter pen on the white spaces of the tail. 

Close-up of sparkle in the tail

The thinking of you verse is from the W Plus 9 fresh cut florals set.  I inked it with blue distress ink, then embossed it with clear embossing powder.

Thanks so much for visiting today.  Have a fabulous Friday!

Blessings,

lynda
 
 

Forget-Me-Nots Birthday Card

Greetings, fellow artists!  I'm posting a card today for a few challenges....

 

I started with watercolor paper, spritzed it, and smooshed some shades of blue Tim Holtz distress inks onto an A2 sized panel, then used the blending tool to blend the edges.  The stamp on this panel is Penny Black's Birthday Panel 2105K, which I inked with TH tumbled glass and stamped it partially.  The flourish stamp around the border is also Penny Black, however, I forgot to index it when I unmounted it.  When the panel dried, I adhered it to a white A2 card.  

To create the focal panel, I taped a square piece of watercolor paper to a board, and wet it with a good amount of water.  Then I used a brush to add shades of blue distress inks, until I was happy with the look.  I dried it with my heat tool, then dropped clean water droplets onto the panel to create some visual interest and texture.  When dry, I removed the panel from the board, revealing the white border around it.  

Next, I inked the Penny Black Remember Me 3127F flower and stamped it, then stamped it partially again.  I added some of the same flourish as I used on the background panel, then mounted it to my card, using craft foam for dimension.  I created the banner, and added the flourish, attaching it with foam tape.  

Some white acrylic paint spattered on, and some sequins  completed the card.

Here is a close-up of the focal panel....

 

This card is for the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Make for the border (add some interest around the border)

Penny Black Saturday Challenge - Your favorite technique (blending and watercolor)

Penny Black at Allsorts - Anything goes - with a stamp

Love to Scrap - Anything goes!

Seize The Birthday Challenge - Anything goes!

Tuesday Throwdown - Anything goes!

Sunday Stamps Challenge - Shades of blue

AAA Cards Challenge - Blending

It's good to be back in my craft room.  We have had two weeks of weatherization, window replacements, and lots of remodeling and purging for our home, so I've been working hard to get that done.  I've missed my crafting and blogging.  

I appreciate your visit today.  Enjoy your weekend!

Blessings,

lynda 

You Inspire Me Card

As I was looking through my stamps for a project I was working on, I came across my Altenew 'Painted Butterflies' clear stamp set.  I pulled it out and placed it on my desk, thinking it would be a great set to use for today's card for the 30 day color challenge at The Daily Marker  .  

On a piece of watercolor paper, I used one of the solid butterfly shapes.  I spritzed the paper liberally with clear water, inked my stamp with TH lucky clover distress ink, spritzed it as well, then stamped it onto the wet watercolor paper.  As anticipated, the image blurred into a pool of color.  I dried this with my heat tool, then inked the same stamp again, with the same ink, and spritzed it (lightly this time), then stamped it over the pool of color on the paper.  Then I inked the outline of the same image, when dry, and stamped it over the solid image.  

I repeated this process with five more butterflies, changing between lucky clover and salty ocean distress inks between butterflies.  In a couple of them, I combined both colors on the same butterfly image.  When dry, I spattered ink onto the stamped panel.  

The verse is from the same stamp set, and I embossed it with gold embossing.  To carry the gold through, I created a gold border using my Krylon gold leafing pen.  Then I went back in and added some spatters around the images using the gold pen.

I mounted the panel onto another watercolor panel, slightly larger, tore the right edge, and adhered it to a white card base.  I am proud of myself for keeping it clean and simple (well, for me it is).

I am also adding my card to these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes

Addicted To Stamps  - Clean and Simple 
AAA Cards - One Stash Favorite (Butterfly stamp set)

I hope you are staying cool in the heat, if you are in one of the areas affected.  This is one of the hottest summer's we have had in a long time.  I am really (don't hate me) looking forward to fall!

Thanks so much for stopping by today.  Think positive, kind thoughts, and enjoy your day.

Blessings,

lynda

Be Yourself - Challenge Card

I used some Magenta Stamp dragonfly stamps today for my card.  I love dragonflies.  A couple of weeks ago, one landed on our kitchen window screen.  He stayed there all morning, keeping us company.  He flew away when the sun came around to that side of the house.  They look so very big close-up!

For my card, I used just two of Magenta's dragonfly stamps....

On the textured card stock, for the stamped panel, I masked off the rectangle with painter's tape, then sponged in Tim Holtz distress inks in shades of green and blue, then spattered it by dipping a paint brush into some ink on my craft mat mixed with water, then flicking it onto the taped and sponged section.  I then stamped the large and small dragonflies a few times with the same inks.  When dry, I carefully lifted the tape.

I stamped a few more dragonflies, colored them with a Dove blender and distress ink, and fussy-cut them out.  I played around with the placement until I was happy, then attached them to the panel with mat adhesive.

The Be yourself is hand written by me.  I didn't have a stamp that had a sentiment I liked for this card.  I intentionally kept the one dragonfly white, and used the clear Spectrum Noir glitter brush on it.  Since it is different from the rest, I thought this sentiment would be perfect.
Here is a close-up which I had hoped would show the sparkle...in real life it really sparkles!!

 

The panel is layered onto another panel with craft foam, then onto a card.

This card is for day 14 of the 30 day color challenge at The Daily Marker.

Thank you for stopping by today!  

Blessings,

lynda


 

If Friends Were Flowers

We're not going anywhere today.....winter storm warnings.  The snow is falling...thick, wet, heavy snow.  Up to 24 inches today. So glad there is nowhere I have to be today!

It's day 16 of The Daily Marker 30 day color challenge.   This is my card for that, and also for some other challenges: 
 HERE at Impression-Obsession challenge blog.  The theme is Friends Forever.  
And HERE at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge.  The theme is One Layer Cards.
And HERE at Simply Less Is More.  The theme is one layer.

I used Impression-Obsessions CL-68 Spring Blooms and WP31 Borders sets for these cards.  I chose Marvy Matchables inks.  I like the really nice colors in these inks, and the smooth, dense pads.  They always stamp so nicely.  The Spring Blooms stamp set has 13 stamps, all spring related and flowers.  So pretty.  The Borders set is one of my favorites...an oldie but goodie.  It also has 13 border stamps...from slim lines to bold, squares in lines, circles in lines, scalloped lines, dotted lines, dashed lines, diamond lines, and more. They are long enough to go all the way from the top of the card to the bottom, with a couple of inches to spare!  Love 'em!

You'll notice I said cards above.  That's because I was having so much fun, I decided to make more cards with these sets while I had everything out.  I try to do that as often as I can.  So here are the rest of the cards.  I will box them up in a gift set for our church card ministry.

I used inks and TH blending tool on some of the backgrounds, and pastel chalks on others.  You can see my technique for using the chalk pastels on my previous post HERE. 

That's it....stay inside, stay warm and safe.

Blessings,

lynda

Tunisian Influence Card

I have been fighting off the sniffles and sneezes for the past four days.  The dripping and sneezing had subsided, but today I started with a cough.  Ugh!  I decided I had better not go to Curves and spread my germs (you're welcome), so worked in my craft room for a while.  This wedding card is for my daughter's best friend, Sarah, her roommate when she was in college.  Sarah and Randy were married in November in the Mexican Riviera, and this Saturday they are having a reception for family and friends who could not make it to Mexico in November.  We are looking forward to the festivities.

I had been wanting to use my Peony Scrolls stamp set from Altenew, so I stamped up one of the flowers with my Tim Holtz distress inks.  I stamped it onto watercolor paper, and used a watercolor brush and ink from the pads to add shading and dimension to the stamp.  I punched the gold panel along the right edge with a Martha Stewart punch.  The cream and blue panel down the center of the gold panel is a die.  I gave the card dimension by raising the leaves with foam tape, and the flower as well.  The Happy Wedding verse is from the same stamp set, and is raised with foam tape as well.  Not to difficult, and lots of fun to make.  

I am entering the card in the Altenew card challenge for May, which is From Places Abroad - Tunisia. You can check out the challenge on the Altenew blog at http://altenewblog.com/2015/05/02/may-challenge-from-places-abroad-tunisia/ .

Here is the inspiration picture:

That's it for tonight.   Extra vitamin C, Vicks, and my box of tissues and I are heading off to bed!

I'll be back tomorrow with a couple more cards I need to take pics of.

Blessings,

     lynda  

Just Saying Hello Challenge Card

Weather here has been exquisite.  The temperature has been hovering in the high 60's and low 70's for several days now.  I have been taking full advantage, especially after our long, l o n g, cold, never-ending winter here!  Working in my garden has been taking up a good deal of my time.  I love planting, weeding, nurturing, and enjoying my garden.

I took a break this afternoon to do some stamping and playing in my craft room.  I was beginning to go into withdrawal!  For my card today I used Tim Holtz distress inks, the Painted Butterflies set from Altenew, the 'hello' die from WPlus9, and gold pigment from FineTec.  

I really had fun with this one.  I love the layering stamps, and this butterfly set from Altenew has several different butterflies in all shapes and orientations, each with layering options.  Distress ink colors I used are tumbled glass, salty ocean, and chipped sapphire; then I added some gold highlights with the FineTec Inca Gold mica pigments.  'Just saying' is from the same stamp set.
I created a background piece using the glazed glass background technique.  You can see Sandy Allnock's tutorial on this technique here:  http://sandyallnock.com/faux-glazed-glass-background-technique/ .  I used this technique on a card in my March 27th post HERE , where I used the Altenew peonies.  Here is a close-up of the background I created with this technique, which I used as a frame for the Just saying and from which I die cut the 'hello.'
I layered up hello by cutting and stacking three layers, then outlined the outside in gold.  I used foam tape to raise the Just saying panel. Finished with a spattering of the inks.

This card is for the following challenges:

Altenew's May challenge - From places abroad - Tunisia

Virginia's View Challenge # 14 - Layers and Dimensions

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Let's Get Sentimental

Faux glazed glass background piece

Close up of the background pieces for hello and just saying

Supplies 

That's it for today.  The sun is getting ready to set, so I think I will go outside for a bit and catch a glimpse.  I am still in awe of nature's beauty!

Blessings,
     lynda

Color Challenge Card # 27

Here we are at day 27 of the 30 Day Color Challenge at The Daily Marker.  This card is also for the Penny Black Friends Saturday Challenge , where the theme is 'spring blooms.'

The stamp is from Penny Black.  I used Derwent Inktense watercolor pencils.  The Happy Birthday die is from Simon Says Stamp.  I used a glaze pen over it to dimensionalize it and give it shine.  The background is an embossing folder, and a punch along the right side.

Thanks for stopping by.  

Blessings,
     lynda

Color Challenge Day Three - Colored Pencils

Is it day three already?  I dedcided to play with my colored pencils today for the color challenge on The Daily Marker 30 Day Color Challenge....

Today was a big birthday for me.  I had lunch with some friends, then Starbucks.  Home now relaxing with hubby, and tomorrow celebrating with the daughter, son-in-law and the grand girls!  Can't wait!

See you tomorrow with Day 4.

Blessings,

lynda

Direct to Paper Inking

I have had a renewed interest in my Colorbox pigment inks lately.  I love the blending of colors using the direct to paper technique that we learned years ago.  I still use it quite often.  Today I played with some blues and greens.  I tried it on linen texture card stock.  Here is my card...

As the name of the technique says, I just applied the ink directly to the card stock from my cat's eye shaped pigment ink pads, starting with the lightest to darkest.  I used a spong to soften and blend the colors.  The stamp is a Hero Arts stamp, which I inked with my India Ink black pad.  Since I used pigment inks on the panel, it was still wet enough to take embossing, so I covered the entire panel with clear embossing ink and heated.  Wow...the image jusy popped.  I love this stamp.  

I'm working on some more cards with this technique.  The pieces are finished, just have to assemble.  Stop back to check them out.

Blessings,

lynda

Blessing of The Heart Card For a Friend

Just a quick post to get this card up.  Busy Saturday here.  Lots of chores and errands to do, then Mass followed by our St. Pat's party at church.

Hope you are enjoying your weekend.

Blessings,
lynda