HLS February Watercolour Challenge - Love You

Ooooh!  It's February and Valentine's Day is coming up soon.  Of course our HLS February Watercolour Challenge is going to have a twist with hearts.

I decided to use my Scarlet Brusho for the watercolour background.  After getting those bold brushstrokes and drying my paper well, I splattered a few drops of water over the red and then, after they had begun to react on the red brushstrokes, dried my paper again.  Love the final effect!

What did I want to put against that bright red?  Some gold foil, of course.  And so I took one of my hearts dies, slipped my script "love" die into the inside space, and cut the whole thing at once.  I love the way the script leaves a negative space that lets the beautiful red show through, don't you?

To finish up, I cut another heart, this time a tiny one, out of white cardstock and put the "you" on it before adding it to my gold heart, propped up on foam dimensionals.  Then I hand cut an arrow from some scraps of gold foil, added that, and my card was done.

I hope you'll check out the awesome cards created by the others in the HLS team HERE.

Our winner for this challenge will receive a $20 coupon to spend at the shop! Check out all the details HERE.

IF YOU USE STAMPS BY HAPPY LITTLE STAMPERS AND YOU ARE OUR RANDOM WINNER, YOUR PRIZE WILL BE DOUBLED!

High on Life!

Some people are easy when you're getting ready to create a birthday card for them.  You know what their hobbies and/or passions are and away you go.  That's pretty well what happened when I sat down to make a birthday card for my nephew.  He has a lot of passions but one which has been with him since he was a little boy is planes.  He truly can't get enough of them.

As it happens I've had a stamp waiting to be used.  I've gone back to it a few times but each time I went with another stamp, another theme.  This time, however, inspiration came instantly when I opened the stamp case and everything came together beautifully.  Don't you absolutely love it when that happens?

This is a 2014 Art Impressions set which is unnamed.  It's one of those cartoonish sets poking fun at the older crowd and the images are pure fun.  What makes it perfect for this card is the vintage plane and the vintage flying gear the elderly pilot is wearing.  Of course in the stamp there was an elderly lady sitting right behind the pilot.  I had to virtually cut her out of his life to make room for the dog.  In the stamp set, this pup was parachuting but without that parachute he's the perfect companion for this pilot.

I used my alcohol Stampin' Blends to colour the images.  I shaded the edges of the stitched clouds by sponging them with Smoky Slate ink.  Yes, there are three sentiments, but somehow they work together beautifully.

Oh, and yes, he absolutely loved the card.  Yay!

I'm entering my card into these challenges:

Shopping our Stash #338 - About Birthdays

Seize the Birthday - Alas, not the single layer of the topping, but an anything goes

The Male Room #77 - Vintage

Addicted to Stamps & More #276 - Anything Goes

There's a new kid on the block!

Intriguing!

Different!

Those two words came to me when I discovered the brand new Twofer Card Challenge introduced by Darnell this month.  One image.  Two cards.  Two totally different designs.

Well, you know I had to try it, right?

Since the prompt word for the challenge is "feathers", I turned to a retired set by Stampin' Up! called Fine Feathers.  The peacock feather in the set gave me some ideas. 

For the first card I stamped the feather several times in a circle, always touching the sides.  Can you see it?  There is a little creature that was simply begging to be created.  I coloured the stamped areas using my Stampin' Blends, the Smoky Slate, Crumb Cake, Daffodil Delight and Pumpkin Pie.  The little creature really began to come to life.  Since I only wanted part of the stamped area to show, I created a tree with a hollow from which he could peek out.  Perfect!  I'm thinking Owl, but it could be anything.

My next card shows off that wonderful feather in all its coloured glory.  I used a mixture of Stampin' Blends and Stampin' Markers for the colours.  Bright!  And so different from the little creature in the other card.

Now Darnell wants the cards photographed together and so here they are.

I hope you'll go over to the Twofer Card Challenge for a look at all the other creations.

Pink and White and Roses --There's Music in the Air!

Woo Hoo!  I got Top Pick at Inkspirational for this card!

Sometimes a challenge can be more than a challenge.  Sometimes it is an inspiration that just won't let you go until you've created something.  That's what happened to me when I saw the lovely pink and white inspiration photo at the Inkspirational Challenge.  I knew what I wanted to do and hoped that I could somehow translate my ideas into a card.

I began with simply heat embossing a section of the background stamp set, Sheet Music.  I used white embossing powder but I think that's going to have to be replaced because it's taking on a more vintage, yellowish tinge.  In other words, it's ageing gracefully.  I used a piece of Shimmery White cardstock for that but the shimmer seems to be lost to the camera lens.  Once the heat embossing was nicely cooled and hardened, I randomly covered it with a wash  of Powder Pink ink and then sponged the lower section to make it a bit darker pink.

After that I cut two roses using my Rose Garden thinlets, one from Powder Pink cardstock and the other from Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer paper.  I also cut a small "love" from Shimmery White cardstock and sponged that to give it an ombre look.

I think the pearls and vellum leaves which I added are the perfect finishing touch, don't you?

I've entered this card into the Inkspirational #152 - Violin Photo Challenge.

I've also entered this card into the Addicted to CAS #127 - Music Challenge.

And finally I've also entered this card into the Let's Craft and Create Challenge #133 - Option Love is in the Air.

HLS January Christmas Challenge - Winter Wonderland

It's not hard to create Christmas cards when there is snow everywhere and the temperatures are hideously cold.  I decided to use a Stampendous stamp which really fit into the scene that I see when I look outside.  Oh, maybe there are more houses around, but the white stuff is there all right. 

Looking further into my stash, I found just the right sentiment in a set by Fiskars. 

All the colouring was done with my alcohol pens, the Stampin' Blends by Stampin' Up!  I decided to use a Smoky Slate cross-stitch die-cut matte to accent the light grey in the scene.  Otherwise I've used Whisper White.

I'm playing along with the HLS January Christmas Challenge which is CAS.

HLS January ATC Challenge - From a Tiny Acorn

Well, I'm entering 2018, already having learned something new.   It's a bit of a thrill to both solve a mystery and to try something new as a new year begins.

What is this new thing I've learned?  Well I've been seeing "ATC" here and there and have even seen whole challenges featuring ATC's.  Finally I began doing a search and discovered that this is a new and novel way to showcase one's art.  They are "Artists' Trading Cards", in case, like me, you've been wondering.  They are always 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" but outside of the size, there aren't any rules.  Well, except for having one's name and a run-down of techniques/products used on the back.  So, instead of giving out business cards, artists have begun doing this.  So cool!

Of course I had to try my hand at making one of these ATCs.  Since my newest and most fun technique of the moment is using Brushos, that is the first thing that came to mind in creating this ATC.  After deciding that, it was just a matter of having fun.

It's all about trees for the January HLS ATC Challenge and so I decided to use my Lovely As A Tree Stamp set.  That one remains my favourite when it comes to trees.  Using the "mighty" Oak tree as well as the branch with the Oak leaves and acorn, I stamped the images on a piece of Whisper White backed with Soft Suede.  Then I used my alcohol Stampin' Blends to colour the scene.  Turning to the tiny Labeler Alphabet, I spelled out "GROW" in the upper right corner.  And I was done.

I hope you'll check out the HLS January ATC Challenge like I did. 

Thanks a Latte

Sketches are fun.  They challenge one to keep within the parameters of a set design and still come up with one's own fun creation.  Well with the sketch by Crystal Komora over at the Paper Craft Crew I knew right away I wanted to use my Coffee Cafe stamp set.  Strangely enough, the only stamp which I used out of the set was the sentiment "Thanks a Latte" and, actually, I cut the "Thanks" away. 

The Designer Paper for the Coffee Break Suite is awesome.  I love the colours.  I love the designs on all the papers.  I can't say enough about it.  It rocks!  So I cut out some of the awesome images, such as the coffee pot and the three little "to-go cups" and, along with the strip of coffee bean Designer Paper, I used that for the card.  My colours?  Keeping with the colours in the paper, I used a base of Whisper White, an embossed layer of Crumb Cake, and then some additional bits of Garden Green and Early Espresso.

I used a large "Thanks" die to cut into the embossed Crumb Cake and then bumped it up on three layers of Early Espresso "Thanks" before adhering it back onto the card.  Cutting into the little stamped oval with the "Thanks" die allowed me to push the "A Latte" portion right into the "Thanks".

I'm playing along with the Paper Craft Crew Challenge #275 (PCC275).

I'm also playing along with the Simon Says Wednesday Challenge Blog which is all about using patterned paper.  Since all my images are from patterned paper as well, I'm in.

Dies, Dies, and Love!

I've been buying a fair number of dies over the past few months.  They don't correspond to a stamped image but they have taken my fancy.  Time, however, to begin using rather than collecting.

I've been going through my drawers, finding products and even kits which I've forgotten.  Time to use or lose.  It's a new year.  I don't like resolutions--too easy to break.  I do, however, like the idea of refreshing my life.  I need to empty those spaces which hold all the unused things I've hoarded and this I've begun to do.

What fun to discover several challenges which I could combine and from which I could get inspiration.  Here, then, is my card using new and old dies, retired punches, assorted inks and bits and pieces of varied papers.  It evolved as I used each product and took on a life of its own.  I'm happy with the results.

Stamps:  Timeless Textures (SU!)

Papers:  Soft Suede, Early Espresso and Very Vanilla cardstocks; Copper Foil; Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper.

Dies:  Trellis from a retired Simply Sent kit (SU!); Words and Flowers (unknown companies) from a source in Saskatchewan; Punches: Confetti Hearts Border (retired SU!)

Inks: Vintage Photo, Wild Honey, Peeled Paint Ranger Distress Oxides; Antique Linen Ranger Distress Ink; Encore Gold Ink.

Et Cetera: Copper Thread (SU!); Dimensionals; Tombow Liquid Glue; Fast Fuze.

I've entered the following challenges:

Let's Craft and Create #133 (Anything Goes with Option "Love is in the Air")

4 Crafty Chicks #384 (Anything Goes with Twist Dies and Punches)

City Crafter Challenge #394 (All You Need is Love)

HLS January Anything Goes With Dies Challenge

It's a Dog's Life!

I don't have any stamps that resemble the two canines I'm looking after at the moment.  But I do have these Tim Holtz mutts which make me smile.  There's something about a dog that makes him want to be your friend.  They look at you with those huge eyes.  They grin that big canine grin with that long tongue hanging out. And they're saying "be my friend".

I decided to colour the little Tim Holtz mutt in brown because it reminds me of chocolate and brownies and all sorts of sweet things.  Because dogs are sweet.  Under that messy, barking, shedding exterior there is a heart so filled with sweetness that it will forgive anything as long as you love it.

I'm entering this clean and simple card in the HLS January CAS challenge which is all about friends and friendship.  

I'm also entering the adorable little chocolate dog into the City Crafter Challenge which is all about colourful dogs.

Experimenting With Colour

I'm still house-sitting and so my supplies are limited.  As I mentioned, I brought my Brushos over in order to experiment with them.  I also found a few small stamp sets of Distress Inks.  Today I decided that I really wanted to try out a brand  new stamp set which I got before Christmas but then, well, the holidays got in the way.  It's one of the sets with which I fell in love from the new Occasions Catalogue.  The name is Waterfront, but the look of the stamps is that of a water-colour painting.  It's intriguing and, scant supplies or not, today was the day I would try it out.

I took a piece of Whisper White for my stamping.  At home I probably would have chosen to use water-colour paper, but I'm not home.  I wanted to see if it might be possible to stamp with the Brushos.  Wetting down a folded paper towel, I sprinkled a line of the Prussian Blue Brusho crystals.  As they reacted to the water in the paper towel, I imagined them going "snap, crackle, pop".  Once they were a solid colour, I took the river shape and stamped it into the blue and then stamped the colour onto my Whisper White.  I was happy to see it had worked well.  There was even a certain amount of "Brusho" texture because some of the crystals were clearly darker than others.  Then I did the same with some of the Moss Green Brusho crystals and stamped the grass behind the blue river. 

NOTE:  The Brusho crystals stained the photopolymer stamps and the stain does not remove.

For my mountains, trees, and scattering of "gravel", therefore, I used the Distress inks which I had on hand.  The only green I had was the Faded Shutters and I wound up having to stamp the image four times in order to get the saturation of green that I was hoping for.

Finally I added a moon and for that used the Antique Linen Distress ink.  Not entirely happy with that, I took the Gamboge and Yellow Brusho Crystals and mixed them on a wet paper towel.  Stamping with that made the moon the colour I was hoping for.

I can hardly wait to be home with all my normal supplies on hand, to see what else I can do with the Waterfront stamp set.

I'm entering this card into the Inkspirational Challenge #151 which is all about stamping.  Mine may be a bit unconventional, but it was entirely stamping.

Bringing in the New Year

I have a lot of products, stamps and tools.  No, I'm not bragging, that's a fact.  Right now, however, I am in a situation where I have the very barest of essentials.  Why is that?  Well, I'm house-sitting for my daughter while she, her husband, and the boys are enjoying the Mexican sun.  House-sitting doesn't really describe what I'm doing.  Besides the house, there are two LARGE dogs and four cats.  I'm taking care of them as well.  I brought a few things with me so that I could pass some time crafting but clearly I didn't bring enough.

Luckily my daughter has a few stamps.  I helped myself to one, an older, retired set from Stampin' Up! which I most likely gave her a few years ago, but tonight it was a godsend.  I wanted to enter the Less is More Challenge, you see.  Nothing that I had brought, except for my Brushos, really worked for the sketch.

Actually the paper I brought with me isn't the best for my Brushos, either, but beggars can't be choosers.  I used normal white stamping paper.  I held my breath waiting for it to pill or do horrible things when I painted it with my Brusho, but it held together admirably well and, with a bit of heat, dried perfectly well.  

For the top curve I used Ultramarine and for the bottom curve I used Emerald Green and then a bit of the Ultramarine.  After that was dry I used my Memento ink to stamp the images from the Up In the Air set.  The line drawings and silhouettes lent themselves perfectly to the layout.  I used my alcohol Stampin' Blends to add some colour to the flowers and leaves and then stamped the sentiment from the Just Add Text stamp set.

After adding a black matte, I mounted it on a base of heavy white.

Clearly I don't need everything I've piled up in my Crafting Room.

I'm entering this card in the Less is More double challenge #360 & #361.