Happy Little Stampers: Watercolour

The arrival of a new month (well almost, here in Canada) means the monthly challenges at Happy Little Stampers begin with the Watercolour Challenge! It seemed a good time for some flowers: 

This large poppy from Concord & 9th is actually two stamps - the smaller flower to the right has a gap built into the stem so it can be combined with the larger one, or used with a sentiment. (You even get the fill-in stem piece if these options don't work with your plan.) In the mood for a little shimmer, I painted these with my Twinkling H2Os. I obviously had been looking at too many Debby Hughes cards recently, and so added lots of splatter, too - hers look like art, mine look like... splatter. :D After everything dried, I die cut my panel and added the sentiment - black ink along with black sparkle embossing powder, to make sure it popped against the leaves. A pale green card base finishes the card. 

A lot of my HLS teammates were in the flower mood this month, too - but not all! Each card is worth your time to view. :) You have the month to join us! 

Supplies: Hero Arts green layering cardstock, Canson watercolour paper, Concord & 9th Pretty Poppy stamps, Versafine onyx black ink, Wow clear gloss & Ranger black sparkle embossing powder, Twinkling H2Os, Winnie & Walter Katharine cutaway pierced rectangle die, gold Smooch, black acrylic paint

Addicted to Stamps and More: Christmas

Is it spring where you are yet? Or maybe I should be asking about fall (for the other hemisphere), but whichever, we are back to CHRISTMAS at Addicted to Stamps and More! I may be the last cardmaker you know to finally own a deer/stag/reindeer head die, but now I do, so I used it: 

I started with my background, blending a night sky using an oval mask and lots of distress inks. Leaving the mask on, I stencilled some stars onto the sky. While the embossing glaze dried, I die cut my deer a few times out of black cardstock as well as one from silver glitter paper. After adhering the black layers together, I offset the silver top layer for a bit of shadow and extra dimension. At first I stamped my sentiment in black, but it looked way too blah, so stamped it in navy instead - much better! I also found some shimmery navy cardstock to back the main panel. 

I'm adding this card to the current Jingle Belles die cut challenge and the STAMPlorations March stencil & Anything Goes challenges. 

Be sure to visit the ATSM blog to see the great inspiration from my teammates! Why not make a Christmas card and join us? ;) 

Supplies: Neenah white, Recollections black & Fabriano navy cardstock, (?) silver glitter paper, Uniko Simply Said Blocks: Christmas stamp, Catherine Pooler juniper mist, milled lavender, dusty concord, mermaid lagoon, blueprint sketch, chipped sapphire & hickory smoke distress inks, CUTplorations Two Reindeer die, Heffy Doodle Starfall &ARTplorations Oval Flexi-Template stencils, Picket Fence snowdrop white paper glaze

One Stencil, Two Ways for Scrap n Stamp

I'm on the Scrap n Stamp blog today with two birthday cards featuring one stencil, Waffle Squares from Picket Fence Studios. Here are a couple of peeks! I hope you'll go check them out. 

Remember you can use my design team code "10Lindsey" for a ten percent saving at Scrap n Stamp! And if your click through my design team badge over on the right, I will get a small commission from any purchase you make - at no extra cost to you! (Really, I don't know how anyone resists those snarky cats, lol.) 

Snarky and Different

It's time for a new Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers challenge! The new one is certainly a challenge for this sister: L is for Layers. I did think about making a card with chickens on it (get it?) but then decided to go all out and accept the challenge. In doing so, I combined it with the current challenge at Time Out: Different. Let me show you my card: 

Here are some of the ways this is a DIFFERENT card for me: 

• So. Many. Layers. I even double matted each of the patterned paper panels. 
• Total lack of snark for a Snarky challenge. (This does occur, but I try not to let it happen too often.) 
• Fancy, frilly edge - made with a punch. 
• Muted colours. 
• A big velvet embellishment. 

Of course, you see I have all the supplies to do this very different card - but as the meme states, collecting crafting supplies and using them are two different hobbies. :D Other than the Graphic 45 paper, which I always love, most of the other supplies are from long-ago giveaways. The edge punch is actually a friend's. 

Some of my sisters are naturals at using layers on their cards, some are more like me - but check the Snarky blog to see how we have all risen to the challenge! Our current Queen and guest designer happens to be a former sister, Jane. Layer it on and join us! 

Supplies: Stampin' Up naturals white & Recollections black cardstock, Graphic 45 Typographic patterned paper, Hero Arts newspaper background stamp, MFT biscotti ink, Martha Stewart edge punch, Maya Road black velvet pleats, foam tape

Inkspirational: Fur or Feathers

Happy Saturday! Time for a new challenge at Inkspirational - FUR or FEATHERS. I thought about cats, then about birds, and ended up with a silly old bear for my card! 

How I had never noticed the resemblance between this Bitty Bear and my favourite bear of books is beyond me. :D But here he is, with his overflowing honey pot and everything. As a background, I cut a mask with a heart die and lightly blended some grass and sky. After embossing the sentiment and popping the bear on, I couldn't resist adding some Glossy Accents to the dripping honey. (Or "T", because once you see it like that, it doesn't go away. :D) 

The fur and feathers are flying at the Inkspirational blog, with lots of great cards from the design team. Take a look, and then I hope you'll be inspired to join us! 

Supplies: Neenah white cardstock, Ranger distress watercolour paper, MFT Bitty Bears stamps, Memento Luxe espresso truffle, Brilliance Mediterranean blue & tumbled glass & bundled sage distress ink, Wow clear gloss embossing powder, Daniel Smith & Gansai Tambi watercolours, QuicKuts heart die, Glossy Accents, foam tape

Ink-Blended Happy Birthday - and a Scrap 'n Stamp Giveaway!

Happy Friday! It’s a happy day for me, as I'm sharing my first post on the Scrap 'n Stamp blog today! It might just be a happy day for you, too - I have a Scrap 'n Stamp giveaway to share! 

Here's my card: 

Rainbows and gold are hard to beat, even if it is after St. Patrick’s Day! I’d never attempted ink-blending a panel before hot foiling, so I decided to give it a try. For my rainbow, I used distress oxides in spun sugar, festive berries, wild honey, bundled sage, mermaid lagoon, and wilted violet.  My favourite part is flicking water onto the inks and blotting with a tissue to get all the fun splotches. Going all out, I also added some gold and black spatters, as well.
Once my panel was dry, I let my Gemini FoilPress heat up, and foiled my sentiment with gold, adding the little “to you” underneath. Turns out I have a million "for you" stamps, and had to really search for this "to you". The card still wasn’t sparkly enough, so I matted my rainbow panel on some Concord & 9th glitter cardstock. My last step (which now I realize might have been one step TOO far, LOL) was to add some black Nuvo drops on either side of the sentiment.

Thanks to Scrap 'n Stamp's generosity, I am giving away the Glimmer faux script happy birthday die I used for this card, as well as two rolls of Gemini foil, in gold and silver shimmer. For your chance to win, leave a comment here and on the Scrap ‘N Stamp blog. You can enter until March 31st. All my Scrap 'n Stamp teammates have had or will have giveaways of their own this month as well, hint, hint. ;) 

Supplies: Neenah white, Recollections black & Concord & 9th granite glitter cardstock, Concord & 9th Perfectly Penned stamp, Versamark & distress oxide inks, Wow fine white embossing powder, Glimmer faux script happy birthday die, Gemini gold foil, gold Smooch, black acrylic paint, Nuvo ebony black crystal drops

Seize the Birthday with a Sketch!

Happy Thursday! It's time for a new Seize the Birthday challenge, and for something a little different, we have a sketch as an option for you! 

Lots of possibilities with this sketch, I think. My card is essentially built around a new-to-me sentiment I wanted to use:

Strangely, I just don't seem to have a lot of drink-related patterned paper in my stash, so I made my own. :D I used Versamark ink with a martini glass stencil, so I could emboss them in clear before adding green and blue watercolour powders. I used more or less matching inks for my two big martini glasses. Is there such a thing as a really small corner-rounding punch? I'd definitely like one so I wouldn't have to round my corners by hand, as I did on the sentiment banner. 

The lovely Carol continues to be our surprise party guest, and she and the StB design team all have their own interpretations of this versatile sketch! Of course, if the sketch isn't calling to you, we love to see all birthday cards in our link-up. Come and join us! 

Supplies: Neenah white & Recollections black cardstock, Canson watercolour paper, MFT Martini Time stamps & dies, MFT Sassy Pants Birthday Greetings 2 stamp, Versamark, Versafine onyx black, Versacolor indigo & Catherine Pooler melon ice ink, Wow clear gloss embossing powder, Picket Fence martini glasses stencil, cerulean blue & spring green Magenta Nuance watercolour powders, MFT double stitched rectangle die, foam tape

Addicted to Stamps and More: Make Your Mark

Yay, it's time for a new Make Your Mark challenge at Addicted to Stamps and More! I made the *marks* on my card today with inks, embossing powder, a stencil and a gel pen: 
 

For this very subtle background, I used my gel plate and distress inks. I swiped three colours directly onto the plate and then blended them together a bit with a brayer. I placed my stencil over the inked area, then my cardstock. It's a much more muted look than I think I could ever get applying ink directly through the stencil as I usually would. The balloons are embossed in silver and then coloured with Copics, with a little highlight added to each one (except the green) with a white gel pen. After fussy-cutting them, I tucked them under the sentiment strip directly onto the stencilled panel, but added dimension at the top with foam tape. Adding to the silver theme, I added a silver mat and silver sequins with a little silver Stickles in the middles. I was a bit surprised to discover the best colour for the card base was black! 

So much inspiration to be found on the ATSM blog! Make the marks of your choice on a card and join us! 

Supplies: Neenah white, Recollections black, scrap mauve & American Crafts silver glitter cardstock, MFT Balloon Bundle & Clearly Besotted Sweet Little Sentiments stamps, Versamark & picked raspberry, wilted violet & salty ocean distress ink, Ranger fine silver embossing powder, Copic markers, MFT blueprints 24 stitched rectangle die, white gel pen, Studio Katia silver fever fusion sequins, silver Stickles, foam tape

Color Hues: Black and White

Welcome to the mid-month Color Hues challenge! Hannelie has chosen the classic combo of BLACK and WHITE for our new pairing. I decided on a music theme for my card: 

I've had this cute little dog stamp for the longest time, but this is the first time he's made it to a card! He is stamped and embossed in black on white, and the music and sentiment in white on black. Super easy! 

That was so much fun, I kept going! 

Another stamp I've had for quite awhile, but only now seeing card use.This time i went for the music on regular white cardstock, matting both the piano in its circle and the sentiment with black and putting everything on a black card base. 

One more: 

First-time-using-a-stamp number three! (I may have a bit of a thing for music stamps. And cat stamps. Oh, and also Christmas stamps. :D Happily, that does not apply here.) With all the fine detail in this image, keeping it simple in black and white seemed like a brilliant idea. ;) 

All of these are heading to the March NBUS challenge! 

Now it's your turn! Visit the Color Hues blog to see all the different ways my teammates, and our current guest designer Shawna, decided to use black and white for their inspiring creations. And then I hope you will join us! 

Supplies: (a little note) Neenah white & Recollections black cardstock, Viva Las VegaStamps Nipper & Sheet Music Background & Clearly Besotted Many Mini Messages stamps, Versamark & Versafine onyx black ink, Wow clear gloss & superfine white embossing powder, MFT stitched square die; (just a note) Neenah white, Recollections black & Concord & 9th graphite glitter cardstock, Viva Las BegaStamps Grand Piano & Sheet Music Background & Technique Tuesday Glee stamps, Versafine onyx black ink, Wow clear gloss embossing powder, Spellbinders circles, MFT blueprints 29 & Lawn Fawn Little Music Notes dies, (play on) Neenah white & Recollections black cardstock, MFT basic black & white stripes patterned paper, Viva Las VegaStamps Cat Recital & Technique Tuesday Glee stamps, Simon Says Stamp intense black ink

Happy Little Stampers: Stencils

Happy Little Stampers continues its week of new challenges with the Stencil Challenge! As long as you use a stencil, it's anything goes. I used a new-to-me stencil and had fun with it! 

This Cake Builder stencil has lots of options to make all kinds of different cakes, with or without candles! (And hey, it's on sale right now at Scrap N Stamp!) The one thing I did learn using this stencil: you need a lot of masking to keep from getting smudges nearby from the other stencil openings. Or, as I did, you can just die cut closely around it. ;) I paired it with some fun birthday patterned paper and a textured pink card base. For some birthday sparkle, I added holographic washi tape to border the patterned paper and sparkle marker to the candle flames. 

As a first time use of this stencil, I'm adding the card to Darnell's March NBUS Challenge, as well as STAMPlorations March Stencil Challenge and AAA Birthday. 

My teammates have lots of inspiration for you on how to use stencils on your cards in all kinds of beautiful ways! Grab a stencil and join us! 

Supplies: Neenah white & American Crafts textured pink cardstock, Lawn Fawn Hello Sunshine patterned paper, spun sugar, picked raspberry, antique linen & ground espresso distress inks, MFT double stitched rectangle die, $ store holographic washi tape, Spectrum Noir clear sparkle marker, foam tape

The Snarky Sisters ZOOM

It's Saturday, and time for a very TIMELY challenge at the Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers: Z is for Zoom Meetings! Being happily funemployed, I haven't had to participate in a lot of Zoom meetings over the past year, just enough to be familiar with all the little glitches that can come with them. Rather than trying to compete with Sister Lee's glorious challenge graphic, I went in a different direction: 

It seems so long since we could go anywhere just for fun, doesn't it? That and the memory of the old Mazda "zoom-zoom" ads led me to this card. I even managed to pick my patterned paper first, so I could watercolour my classic car to go with it! The car was a little lost on the busy patterned paper - I considered a vellum panel behind it, but then decided to try embossing this dotted circle instead. It adds just enough background to let the car shine. The sentiment is, of course, computer-generated. 

As always, lots of great inspiration from my snarky sisters as well as our current Queen and guest designer, Beverley! If you've participated in a Zoom meeting, I'm sure you can come up with a suitable card and join us. 

Supplies: Neenah white & Recollections black cardstock, Canson watercolour paper, Basic Grey Wander patterned paper, STAMPlorations Enjoy the Ride & Altenew Halftone Circles stamps, Versamark & Versafine onyx black ink, Wow white embossing powder, Zig watercolour markers, Creative Memories silver gel pen, foam tape

Inkspirational: Photo

Welcome back for a new Inkspirational Challenge! Look at this adorable puppy picture! My card had to have a puppy, of course, and I also tried to capture the mood of the photo: 

 

I put my little puppy on a mat (that's originally a beach towel), added a sentiment - and there it is! A clean and simple "miss you" card. 

Lots of great inspiration from my team members at the Inkspirational blog! I hope you'll join us. 

Supplies: Neenah white & Hero Arts layering cardstock, Mama Elephant Playful Pups & Lawn Fawn On the Beach stamps, Versafine onyx black ink, Wow clear embossing powder, Copic markers, Sugar Pea Designs cardfront element builder die, Glossy Accents

Happy Birthday, Scrap N Stamp! (And an Announcement!)

Happy Friday! It's a very happy Friday for me, as I get to officially announce I've joined the Scrap 'N Stamp design team! As my very first post, I get to be part of the BIRTHDAY BASH blog hop! It's Scrap 'N Stamp's birthday month, so of course there are presents for everyone! One lucky commenter from this month's blog hop will win a $50 gift certificate to the store! And until Monday at midnight EST, all birthday-related items are 10% off. If you're shopping, you can also use 10Lindsey for 10% off your order! 

I broke out a new-to-me set, Snarky Cats, for my birthday card - might as well let my new teammates see a major side of my cardmaking personality! 

I made the background first, starting with masking off most of the panel and stencilling the brick wall. Moving my masks around, I then added the grey floor and green wall. My cat and milk bottles are stamped on watercolour paper and lightly watercolored, fussy cut and added to the card. I stamped the sentiment, and my card was done! 

[Fun fact about the milk bottle: I bought the Crazy Cat set (that the bottle is from) from Scrap 'N Stamp when it was still a bricks and mortar store on Granville Island called I'm Impressed!] 

Be sure to hop along and comment for your chance to win a $50 gift certificate to Scrap 'N Stamp! Here's the line-up: 

Tara <-- start here!

Lindsey <-- that's me!

Chala <-- your next stop

Susan

Nancy

Kia

Deborah

Jessica

Thanks for visiting today and enjoy the hop! 

Supplies: Neenah white cardstock, Tim Holtz distress watercolour paper, Stampers Anonymous/Tim Holtz Snarky Cats & Crazy cats stamps, MFT extreme black & fired brick, bundled sage & hickory smoke distress inks, Zig watercolourmarkers, Stampers Anonymous/Tim Holtz bricked stencil