Poppies are so beautiful

I went away for the weekend to get my Copic Certification. Learned tons of information. All available online. :)

I got home and was very excited to practice and realized.... I don't have enough of the colors grouped together to do the proper shading.

So I will keep practicing with what I have and slowly build up my colors.

I took my class at a stamp store in Eau Claire Wisconsin Named: Picture This http://www.mmemorieslast.com/. Lovely store, class room and a scrapping retreat right behind it. If you are in the area... Worth the drive to check it out.

This all leads into me acquiring some new stamps.


I picked up this great background stamp from Cornish Heritage Farms... Scrapblock Newspaper Ads 6 x 6.

I new I wanted to ink it up and used the light grey dye ink to create my background. The circle is 5 1/2" and mounted on a 5" x 5" square black cardstock.

I stamped the Flourishes Poppy onto the stamped background using Versafine Ink and used my watercolor pencils to color in the flowers.

I attached the little charm from Plaid and this is what it says:
There are always flowers for those who want to see them.

Products:

• Cornish Heritage Farms - SB-119XUM Newspaper Ads
• Flourishes - Poppy Patch Set # 35
• Versafine - Black Onyx, Vintage Sepia
• Memento - London Fog
• Watercolor Pencils
• Inkadinkado - Bumblebee 99259-MM
• Plaid - Plenty of Flowers Charms
• Ranger Stickles

Thanks for stopping by...

Suzz

Thinking Pink Ink & More

I was on a scraps binge again... I dug through my scraps and came up with a pile of pink scraps and this weeks challenge over at the Hero Arts Blog is monochromatic cards. http://heroarts.com/blogs/club/2009/07/20/monochromatic-monday/

This was my first card using some of my scraps and creating some new scraps...

and here was my second card using up some other pink scraps I had laying out..

The card opens up under the heart and the ivory circle is for the sentiment and signing.

Products:

• Fiskars Corner Punch
• Cuttlebug Embossing Folder - Textile
• Hero Arts - Old Writing
• Hero Arts - Antique Brocade
• Hero Arts - Heart Winged Butterfly
• Hero Arts - Anytime Messages
• Hero Arts - Elegant Flower
• Memento Rose Bud
• Light Pink Embossing Powder
• Versamark Watermark Ink
• StaZon Fuschia
• QuicKutz - Labels
• Cuttlebug Swiss Dots Folder
• Blue Moon Beads - Lost & Found Charms (Cameo & Heart Charm)

Thanks for stopping by..

Suzz

Odds and Ends

I decided yesterday to pull out all my scraps and try to put something together. This consists in a pile that could cover my entire desktop. So I sorted through and pulled some shapes and colors that could work together and came up with this.

Not everything was a scrap but many of the individual pieces were. :)

Products:

• Hero Arts - Heart Winged Butterfly
• Cornish Heritage Farms - Silhouette
• Cuttlebug Embossing Folder
• Hero Arts - Raindrop Background
• Memento - Rich Cocoa
• Ranger - Embossing Powder - Lettuce
• Ranger Distress Inks - Peeled Paint
• Versafine - Vintage Sepia
• QuicKutz - Die Cuts
• Fiskars Shape Template - Ovals

I hope you are having a wonderful weekend.

and as my youngest is saying now... Peace Out...

Suzz

Final Template Card

My final template card for awhile.. I needed four cards for a class and this is the final one using another shape from The Crafters Workshop. I went onto their website http://www.thecraftersworkshop.com/ and they have a bunch more fun templates, good thing my LSS doesn't carry all of them or I would be in trouble.

Products:

• The Crafters Workshop -Lotus Template
• Inkadinkado - Tree Stamp
• Cuttlebug Embossing Folder
• Versafine - Vintage Sepia
• Adirondack Brights - Sunshine Yellow, Sunset Orange
• Memento - Rich Cocoa
• Clear Embossing Powder
• Twine, Button Unknown

Thanks for stopping by...

Suzz

Water Garden?

I was working on a card for a class and got sidetracked with this... Another black and white card for the Hero Arts challenge this week. I think this card feels like a little pond and maybe should have a Koi swimming around in it. :)

So simple... The circle is 5 1/2" in diameter. The rest is all black pigment ink and clear embossing powder.

Products:

• Hero Arts - Black and White Flowers
• Heathers Stamping Haven - SB HSH 193G
• Hero Arts - Heart Winged Butterfly
• Versafine Black Onyx
• Clear Embossing Powder
• Crystal Stickers
• Vellum
• Fiskars Circle Template / Shape Xpress Cutter

Thanks for stopping by...

Suzz

Orange and Blue

The challenge this week on the Hero Arts blog is complementary colors. I selected the orange and blue colors to play with.

I started with some Sizzix Stars that I cut from white cardstock. Hero Arts has a new clear set called everyday sayings which is really nice because it has a ton of different sentiments for different occassions in different fonts. I selected the congratulations because of the size and style. I stamped that all over the stars in a blue pigment ink. I also used a different sized congrats from a graduation clear set from HA too.

I sponged the edges with the Adirondack orange. The bottom half of the card is a stamp I received in a bundle from MSE. I love the uneven lines of the stripes and I actually kissed my polka dot background stamp from Hero arts to take off the ink. I had to mask and lay down each stripe individually but I really like the effect.

The top is clear embossed polka dots and sponged with the same orange dye ink.

Products:

• Hero Arts - Clear Design Everyday Sayings
• Hero Arts - Clear Design - Graduation
• Hero Arts - Raindrop Background
• MSE - Stripe Stamp?
• Adirondack - Sunset Orange
• Versafine - Habanero, Majestic Blue
• Fiskars Circle Template & Shape Express
• Sizzix Die Cut - Stars
• Buttons, Ribbon - Unknown

One last question for you... This so reminds me of my brothers room when we were growing up... Do you remember the patriotic rooms? He had a red, white and blue bedroom with old fashioned soldiers dressed from the colonies.

Thanks for stopping by.

Suzz

Background Stamps

I drew up this sketch and then tried to execute it... I am not very good at translating sketches to cards. I wanted to use three bows across a circle. Unfortunately... I didn't have enough ribbon in the color and size I wanted to get bows. So I ended up with knots...


and the card was modified from the sketch because the visual effect was not as pretty as the sketch. :)

Products:

• Hero Arts - Wavy Leaf Pattern
• Hero Arts - Raindrop
• Hero Arts - Sandra's Letter Background
• EK Success Border Punch
• Fiskars - Circle Template
• Versamark Watermark Ink
• Light Purple Embossing Powder
• StazOn - Vibrant Violet
• Kaiser's - Gems
• American Craft - Ribbon
• Prima Flowers

I have been so busy lately that my cardmaking has reflected it. My son has just graduated from 8th grade. My mom is sick and we have been working on getting her medication correct. We have a new puppy and then there is always work. So this has been a little bit why you have seen so little of my cards lately.

Have a great day!

Suzz

Caardvarks Challenge - Don't quote me

The Caardvark's challenge http://caardvarks.blogspot.com/2009/05/dont-quote-me-but.html is to use a quote on a card. This card is actually a circle card. I laid it on brown cardstock to show off the colors.


I love this little black and white flower stamp from Hero Arts. It makes such a beautiful background!

Products:

• Impression Obsession - C5319 Lofty Dreams
• Hero Arts - Black & White Flower
• Hero Arts - Monarch Butterfly
• Fiskars Circle Templates / Shape Express Cutter
• Clear Embossing Powder
• Versafine - Vintage Sepia
• Ranger Distress Inks - Shabby Shutters, Tea Dye
• Vellum

I have a second card using the same techniques (Sponging, Resist) but with a very different feel coming along. If work lets up a little I will try to finish it tonight so I can share with you tomorrow.

Have a great day!

Suzz

Kwerner Challenge #50

I made 3 cards using Kristina's 50th color challenge http://www.kwernerdesign.com/blog/?p=1333 and can only submit one link so I decided on this one:
The colors were brown, red, yellow, turqouise, and white... Here is the card I am linking to her challenge.

The vines are stamped with yellow first and overlaid with a brown to give a shadow effect.
I cut several of the vines and used them for the stems of the flowers.

Products:

• Hero Arts - Designer Sketch
• Hero Arts - Old French Writing
• Hero Arts - Designblock Floating Leaf Pattern
• Memento - Rich Cocoa, Dandelion
• StazOn - Teal Blue
• Versafine - Crimson Red
• Fiskars Circle Template
• Fiskars - Border Punch
• Penny Black

Thanks for stopping by...

Suzz

I have been ink deprived...

I have had so much going on at home this week, that I have had very little time to work on projects. I created this project for the Hero Arts weekly challenge http://heroarts.com/blogs/club/2009/04/06/motivation-mondays-beyond-paper/ which is anything but paper. (Stamp on anything but paper) and the CPS challenge. http://cardpositioningsystems.blogspot.com/2009/04/cps110-sponsored-by-hero-arts-part-3.html

I have been dying to play with my grungeboard paper and decided to create some flowers. Here is a close up of the flower:


The flowers were created by using the scallop punches and punching out grungeboard paper.



After the circles were punched spray Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist on the grungeboard. Both sides took some of the glitter but only one side took the color (Non-textured side). Take an Adirondack Dye Ink pad and smear directly on the scallop. Stamp the birthday DesignBlock from Hero Arts using an Orange StazOn ink.

After that was all done and dry, cut slits around the scallops towards the center.



Fold the flower in half and put a glue dot in the fold. Fold the flower again in half and put another glue dot in the middle. Roll edges of flower outword by rolling on petals with pencil to curve.

The butterfly is also made from grungeboard. The image is stamped using StazOn ink and colored over with a permanent marker to get a darker effect. The inside of the butterfly is colored using alcohol markers (Copic). I only have a few colors to I didn't have the opportunity to do too much shading on the butterfly.

Products:

• Hero Arts DesignBlock - Birthday
• Hero Arts - DesignBlock - WoodGrain Pattern
• Hero Arts - Fanciful Filaments
• Hero Arts - ClearDesign Birthday Expressions
• Hero Arts - Heart Winged Butterfly
• Hero Arts Shadow Ink - Soft Sand
• Ranger Distress Ink - Shabby Shutters
• StazOn - Pumpkin
• Fiskars Shape Express Cutter
• Fiskars Circle Template

Thanks for stopping by....

Suzz

Glimmer Mist Leaves

The olive green glimmer mist from Tattered Angels is such a beautiful color. It combines a very pretty green with a sheen of gold. I also purchased this beautiful stamp from Hero Arts and decided to use it as the background.

The recipe for this is very simple. The background was made by stamping the leave image repeatedly on white cardstock using Versamark Watermark Ink. Heat emboss the images using clear embossing powder. Spray the Olive Green Glimmer Mist across the entire image and wipe with a paper towel to smear the excess across and get an even color. Buff the embossing to remove any excess color. Just a couple of hints working with the glimmer mist. 1. Shake Shake Shake... The gold will settle on the bottom and you will know when you have shaken it enough as there will be no settling on the bottom. 2. If you can't get anything to come out of the spray bottle run it under some warm water. This will loosen up anything that is clogged in the sprayer. After you run the warm water make sure you spray on scrap paper until you get an even spray again.

The only other thing to mention is the stamped image on the circle was a green ink and brown ink mixed together.

Products:

• Hero Arts - Black and White Flower, Elegant Flower
• Hero Arts - Clear Design - Birthday Messages
• Hero Arts - Petite Birthday
• Tattered Angels - Glimmer Mist Olive Green
• Fiskars Circle Cutter & Circle Template
• Versafine - Olympia Green, Vintage Sepia

Thanks for stopping by...

Suzz

Lovey Dovey Challenge - OCC

This card is for 2 different challenges. The OCC challenge is a Lovey Dovey Challenge http://ourcreativecorner6.blogspot.com/2008/12/lovey-dovey-challenge.html and is based on a sketch from Hero Arts Blog Challenge: http://heroarts.com/blogs/club/2008/12/19/having-fun-on-friday/ I am giving this to my DH. He is always there taking care of things and really is a wonderful husband.

There wasn't much recipe. The only thing I did was I stamped on a transperancy to make the pair of skunks. The grass is made from distress re-inkers put on acetate and cardstock laid on top of it to absorb the ink. The sky is sponged.

Products:

• Hero Arts Clear Design - Woodland Critters
• Spellbinders Nestabilities - Scalloped Circles
• Fiskars Circle Template & Circle Cutter
• Cuttlebug Embossing Folder - Tiny Bubbles
• Marvy Uchida Corner Rounder Punch
• Distress Re-Inkers - Mustard, Lettuce
• Distress Ink - Broken China, Shabby Shutters
• Pink Sharpie -(Noses)
• Rubber Stampede - Prairie Grass
• Ribbon - Martha Stewart
• PP - Unknown

Thanks for dropping 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..

Little Snowman Card...

This little card is made with the Hero Arts Snowman. I think he has been done in a similar fashion on a few of my other cards. This card was made for the Hero Arts Blog challenge. You are to be inspired by one of the guests on the blog this week. This card was inspired by Donna she is such a nice person and she makes the cutest cards. Here is a link to her flickr photostream: http://www.flickr.com/photos/3umbrellas/ and here is the link to her day on the HA blog: http://heroarts.com/blogs/club/2008/11/05/win-a-day-contest-winner-donna-mikasa/

Here is a card that is inspired by Donna's cards:

I won't provide all the details as they are fairly simple...

I put the folded cardstock on top of the nestabilities oval scallop and made sure I could see the outline of the oval on the left side. I just ran it through my cuttlebug and there you have it a little scalloped oval card.

I stamped the snowman on the patterned paper to cut out the brim of the hat, the hat and the scarf.

I used watercolor pencils and water brush to give the snowman his pink tinge and black gems for his eyes.

Products:

• Hero Arts Design Clear Warmest Winter Wishes
• Basic Grey Wassail - Greetings,
• Versafine Onyx Black Pigment Ink
• General Kimberly Watercolor Pencils
• Spellbinders Nestabilities Scalloped Oval
• Marvy Uchida Scalloped Oval Punch
• Fiskars Oval Template, Fiskars Circle Cutter
• Crystal Stickers Pearls

Thanks for stopping by...