Small share today...

Here is a little card I did for the Hero Arts Challenge of thanks. I was busy yesterday typing up instructions to send off some projects. I also played around with some little pink elephants who haven't made it on a design yet.


I found this snowflake in an after Christmas sale. There was a little pack of 3 plastic iredescent snowflakes in the ornament aisle. I immediately thought accent for a card and bought them. I stamped the writing on them using the StazOn ink.

Products:

• Basic Grey - Wassail -
• StazOn - Royal Purple
• Fiskars Threading Water Punch
• Versamark Watermark Ink
• Clear Embossing Powder
• Button, Ribbon - Unknown
• Hero Arts Sparkle Clear - Simple Messages
• Hero Arts - Three Holiday Messages
• Hero Arts Clear Design - Warmest Winter Wishes

Thanks for stopping by...

Suzz

KWerner Color Challenge # 35

Sorry I have been away. I have been creating 40 Christmas cards to send out. The kids even helped which was great!

I was so inspired when I saw Kristina's latest color challenge: http://kwernerdesign.com/blog/2008/12/color-inspiration-35.html and on the Hero Arts blog they are hosting a sketch challenge: http://heroarts.com/blogs/club/2008/12/15/sketch-challenge-week-with-new-hero-arts-and-basic-grey/. So these cards just rolled right out. :) Okay maybe not that quickly but they were fairly easy because of the sketch and colors being given to me.

I created 2 different cards using Kristina's color palette:

I love these colors they were really easy to work with and there are 4 sketches and layouts to play with on the HA blog.

Card # 1:

Products:

• Hero Arts - Poinsettias and Birds
• Hero Arts - Screen Shadow
• Stazon - Timber Brown
• Hero Arts - Sparkle Clear - Holiday Messages
• Memories - Sky Blue
• Martha Stewarts - Snowflake Punch
• Ribbon & Gems Unknown
• Fiskars - Threading Water Punch

My second card was inspired by a new stamp I just bought from Impression Obsessions. This little bird is holding a candy cane on the stamp. I just cut that away and put the bird on a branch.

Products:

• Hero Arts - Long Branch
• Hero Arts - WoodGrain Pattern
• Hero Arts - Clear Design - Birthday Messages
• Hero Arts - Shadow Ink - Sand
• Impression Obsession - Candy Cane Chickadee
• Hero Arts - Poinsettias and Birds
• Cuttlebug Embossing Folder -
• Nestabilities - Scalloped Circle
• Marvy Uchida - Circle Punch
• StazOn - Timber Brown
• Adirondack - Pigment Ink - Cloudy Blue

Thanks for stopping by...

Suzz

Two similar but different cards....

Have you ever had a card you wouldn't give up on? Well.... my first card I am sharing I made 4 variations of it. :( I spent way too much time on that first card. I ended up using some of the same elements and made my second card.

I am curious if anyone else out there does the same thing... Usually I will keep the elements if it isn't coming together and put them in a scrap pile of pieces I like that I want to go back to someday...

Tell me if you like card # 1:

or card # 2... :)

The recipes are very simple and I won't go into the details. The corner circle was cut using a fiskars circle templates. They come in a set with multiple circles and I used the circle cutter.

Products: (for both cards)

• Hero Arts - C4594 Pod Branches
• Hero Arts - F4827 Scroll Tree
• Hero Arts Clear Design - Happiness Messages
• Hero Arts - Bird in a Cage
• Memento - Rich Cocoa
• StazOn - Timber Brown
• Hero Arts - Pearls
• Crystal Stickers - Pearls
• Lace - JoAnn's
• Versamark Watermark Ink
• Pink Embossing Powder
• Spellbinders Nestabilities Scalloped Circle
• Marvy Uchida Circle Punch
• Fiskars Circle Templates, Fiskars Circle Cutter
• Fiskars Threading Water Punch
  

I also made something elegant to share tomorrow... Unfortunately I am off to do my second calendar page.. Arghh... This will probably take me a couple of days... Thanks for dropping by..

3 Things...

3 Things... 3 different stamps/stamp sets and 3 different inks... How difficult should that be... Apparently some of us(me) like the freedom to grab things and add them at will...

Here is the challenge: http://heroarts.com/blogs/club/2008/10/20/motivation-monday-3s-please/

I kept playing around with this one and I was inspired by a card which was one of the magazines and it was white and light aqua blue and that was all the colors... It really was effective...

I went off on my white space tangent again...

My 3 inks were: Versamark, Honey Memories Ink and Adirondack Orange Ink. (I know I probably cheated a little here but I did use 3 different ink pads)

My 3 Stamps/Sets were:

Hero Arts DesignBlock Tree, Hero Arts Sparkle Design Hello Birdie, Penny Black Crystalline.

Orange and Teal Christmas Cards... Why not....

Recipe:

1. Stamp tree with versamark on white cardstock and heat emboss with light blue embossing powder.
2. Cut white cardstock around edges of the tree.
3. Cut 6 3/4" x 4 3/4" white cardstock.
4. Lay stamped image of tree cardstock in center of the larger white cardstock. I taped it down with repositionable tape.
5. Cut out a circle using circle cutter from scrap cardstock.
6. Lay circle frame over tree and white cardstock background. Ink up sponge dauber with golden yellow dye ink. Smear on the golden ink in a circular motion from the outside of the circle towards the middle. Ink the entire circle with the golden color.
7. Pull the stamped image from the white cardstock and mount on an aqua background.
8. Cut a 1 1/4 x 1 1/2 white cardstock. Ink the sentiment with orange on the key sentiment and stamp on the white cardstock. Ink the sentiment with versamark and randomly stamp across the white cardstock. Heat emboss with light blue embossing powder.
9. Mount sentiment on teal cardstock.
10. Cut slit 3/4" from the left side and bottom on the stamped image for ribbon. Run ribbon around the inside of the card to the front under the stamped image. Bring through the slit and tie with other end of the ribbon.
11. Stamp with versamark the birds and heat emboss with light blue embossing powder. Cut out using your fine scissors. :)
12. Attach the birds on the moon portion of the stamped image.
13. Attach the Stamped image with foam squares making sure to align your moon on the top layer with the moon on the bottom layer.
14. Attach the sentiment to the front of the stamped image in the lower right hand corner.

Products:

• Fiskars Circle Cutter, Circle Template
• Hero Arts Sparkle Design - Hello Birdie
• Hero Arts - DesignBlock Tree
• Memories - Honey Dye Ink Pad
• Versamark Watermark Ink Pad
• Penny Black - Crystalline
• Adirondack Brights - Sunset Orange
• Stampendous Stamp N Stuff - Baby Blue Pastel
• Ribbon - Unknown

Character Cards

On Two Peas one of the challenges was posted by Chris http://creative-gnome.blogspot.com/ . Here is the link to her challenge: http://www.twopeasinabucket.com/userblogpost.asp?id=39610

Her challenge is called "You're Such a Character" and requires stamping some type of character. I do have a couple of stamps that are characters.. A few Snoopy and one Raggedy Ann and Andy stamp due to these characters having special meaning for my kids.


I don't usually stamp character cards... or cards with figures... (Discovered this when I was looking for a stamp with a woman on it for another challenge)


My youngest one has a blanky made out of raggedy Ann and Andy. I ended making my card using Raggedy Ann and Andy... This is not something I normally would create but I think it turned out cute as a button.. (Terrible Pun)

Naturally my littlest one wants this card. Part of the challenge is to send the card for Cards for Heroes... I will have to probably swap for a card more appropriate for a soldier.

The recipe for this wasn't too difficult. I used my water color pencils and colored the stamped image. After I colored them I used a fine tipped waterbrush to smooth out the colors.

I then used a sponge dauber and inked it with blue and in a circular motion starting off the edges of the paper I inked the edges with some blue on the top and green on the bottom.

I used red thread on the buttons. I also edged the sentiment with blue ink. Stamped some red snowflakes on the blue background. (I was trying to emulate Ann's little blue dress)

I am sorry.. this time I can't name all the products... I created this before I left on vacation and didn't write down everything. If you have any questions, feel free to leave me a post or send me an email and I will answer it when I get back to my craft table...

Thanks for stopping by...

Yoo Whoo.... SOF Party Continues...

This is a bunch of challenges in one for SOF... Here is the master thread for all the challenges: http://www.twopeasinabucket.com/mb.asp?cmd=display&thread_id=2661997 . One of the challenges is to case someone. The card I cased is linked here: http://www.twopeasinabucket.com/pg.asp?set=recent&gallery=3&cmd=display&layout_id=1398353





The challenges I am linking this to are: Get inspired, Cut it Out, Cuttlebug and Resist This.

The owls are cut out. The inspiration is the card I cased. The resist is a wax paper resist technique.

I have never tried this so I was very excited when Daria raised this as a challenge. She also showed multiple examples of the the papers she created.

I created multiple sheets of the wax paper resist backgrounds, so don't be surprised if you see them coming back. Including the cuttlebug wax paper resist.

Recipe:

1. The background the owls are stamped on is from a wax paper resist. I started with a piece of wax paper. I layed it on my new scor-pal (thanks Lisa.. a lovely birthday gift from my good stamping buddy) and I scored lines vertically and for part of the page I also scored horizontally.
2. I took the score wax paper and placed it between 2 pieces of glossy cardstock with the glossy surface facing in on both pieces. I then covered it with a thin towel. I ironed on a medium setting with no steam. I had to iron for a few minutes.
3. The beauty of this is you get two effects the cardstock on the bottom and the cardstock on the top. One of them will get a much softer impression.
4. After I ironed and I could see the pattern on my cardstock, I took it back to the craft table and used my dye ink to smear over the surface. The owls and the owl background are smeared on the same sheet of cardstock but I used multiple colors to see what I liked the best. I buffed the excess ink off using a paper towel.
5. Stamp the owls on the brown resist background with StazOn.
6. Cut out the owls. Attach black gems for eyes and put white on the black gems with gel pen.
7. Everything else was just cutting and rounding corners. Nothing too special.

Products:

• Memories Dye Ink Pad - Honey
• Ranger Distress Ink - Vintage Photo
• StazOn Olive Green, Timber Brown
• Hero Arts - A4942 Tiny Owl
• Hero Arts - Sparkle Design
• Hero Arts - H4946 Long Branch
• Cuttlebug Embossing Folder - Swiss Dots
• Basic Grey - Phoebe
• Brown Ribbon - Unknown
• Fiskars Threading Water Border Punch
• Marvy Uchida Corner Rounder
• Hero Arts
  

Thanks for dropping in...

Butterscotch and Lettuce...

Probably not something you would want to eat... :) But I think the alcohol inks together make a beautiful combination.


I mixed the colors together and decided to create 2 cards from the one background. The other card is off for submission.


I made my family vote on which card was submitted and which ended up on the blog.


It was a close call as the other card has buttons and my older daughter doesn't like them very much on cards.. But this card ended up here.

Recipe:

1. Pull a piece of glossy cardstock. Put 3 drops of lettuce alcohol ink on the felt on the applicator. Add 3 drips of blending solution. Smear the entire glossy cardstock using circular motions with green ink. Drip Blending solution directly on the inked cardstock in various places. Drip lettuce in various spots on the surface. Drip Butterscotch in various places on the cardstock. Bring back the blending solution and drip between colors to start the blend and the blurriness. At the end I put blending solution on a new piece of felt on my applicator and dab all over where I think the edges of my drips are too strong in color or don't blend well. It softens the background.
2. Stamp the flowers using StazOn Ink (Timber Brown, Olive Green). Stagger the flowers to give different layers of wildflowers.
3. Using the Signo Uni-Ball White Gel Pen outline the flowers and add details to make the flowers pop even more.
4. The only other unusual thing on here was I used my brown StazOn ink to change the color of the ribbon. I had a orange sheer organza ribbon that was too orange for the colors I was trying to blend. I laid it down on scrap paper and smeared the ink pad on the length of ribbon needed to create a bow. This gave it a slightly iridescent look as it changes from orange to brown depending on the angle.

Products:

• Fred B Mullet - 205 - Clover Group
• Penny Black - 3360k Curlicue Penny Black
• Penny Black - 2666k Blush
• Penny Black 3367H Lace Flower Trio
• Hero Arts - Clear Design Anytime Messages
• StazOn Solvent Ink - Timber Brown, Olive Green
• RiboonFX - Hobby Lobby Orange Organza
• Fiskars - Threading Water Punch
• Brads - Unknown
• Spellbinders Nestabilities - Square Scallop
• Marvy Uchida Oval Punch
• Cuttlebug Embossing Folder - Birds & Swirls
• Kaisers Pearls
  

Toodles... Have a favorite Second Cousin who would always say that. :)

Christmas Cards in August....

Those backgrounds I made using the Peeled Paint Distress ink has led me down a path of Christmas and Fall cards... :) That and I picked up some Christmas stamps yesterday.

I am working on something else which is not Christmas, Fall or Cold weather related. I don't know if it will make it to a finished project or I may jump onto something else.

Products:

• Fiskars - Threading Water Punch
• Vellum, White, Yellow/Green Cardstock
• Tattered Angels - Glimmer Mist, Lemon Zest
• Ranger Distress Ink - Peeled Paint
• Signo - UniBall White Gel Pen (Love this!)
• Hero Arts - DesignBlock - S5068 Poinsetta and Birds
• Penny Black - 3028F Joy, Hope...
• Ribbon (Hobby Lobby)
• Hero Arts - Gems
• Crystal Stickers - Pearls
• Versafine Pigment Ink - Crimson Red
• Versamark Watermark Ink
• Ranger Clear Embossing Powder