Make it Monday #306: Fan Brush Trees

Betsy has us getting "artsy" this week, using fan brushes to paint trees. While she used re-inkers, I got out my watercolour paints. It took me a couple of tries. I think my fan brush is defective! Lol. A 1" flat brush worked better for me, for the first layer, as well as for the sky, but I went over the trees with a darker paint, using the fan brush. I also used the fan brush to layer the "snow", using acrylic white paint. There is Wink of Stella over the white paint, which doesn't show up in this photo.
Thanks for the fun challenge, Betsy!

Thanks for looking!!

Dies: In the Meadows

Stamp: Snowfall Style (sentiment)

Blog Hop for Dawn

I am so glad that we're honouring Dawn in this way! (Please see more info here, if you haven't heard why we're doing this for Dawn.) I was happy to make a card for her, and realized that I have many stamp sets and dies that she has designed. Dawn loves colour, so I made this with bright colours, ones I've seen her use often. I have already mailed this to her, and hope that it brings a smile to her face.


I used a pre-printed watercolour sheet, from "Bold Blossoms, and painted the flowers using my Daniel Smith watercolours. The sentiment is from "It's the Thought". On the inside, I stamped a sentiment from Dawn's "Tucked In:Thinking of You".

A close up of the sparkle I added to the flower  centers.

PTI October 2017 Blog Hop

Well, I must admit that the inspiration photos had me quite stumped for ideas this month! I finally decided to focus on the blues in all the photos, especially the Phthlo-type blues, which can be seen in the middle to bottom portion of my focal panel. October is Pastor appreciation month, so this will be going to our husband and wife pastor team, and a thank you for all that they do.
This one was done using Daniel Smith watercolours, and Year of Psalms:April, which was heat embossed in white.



I made a second one, using Distress Oxide inks. Why make one, when you can make two??


Thanks for looking!

Make it Monday #300

Wow! Have there really been 300 MIM Challenges? Time flies!

For this challenge, Melissa has us building wreaths. I'm in need of more Christmas cards, so went with a Christmas theme. I don't think I've ever used kraft card stock for a Christmas card before, but I kind of like how this turned out. I used a Tim Holtz stencil to sponge the background on, using Classic Kraft ink, and the Mega Mat Stack 4 die, with Rustic White paper (same die that Melissa used on her cards--she inspired to get mine out.). I then built my wreath using Twig Wreath stamps and dies. I added a couple sprigs from Beautiful Berries: Winter, and topped it off with a tiny bow from Memory Box. Have a great day, and thanks for looking :)

Inks used: Pure Poppy, Scarlet Jewel, Green Parakeet, Prairie Grass, Dark Chocolate, Classic Kraft

PTI-September Blog Hop

It's time for the Papertrey Ink monthly Blog Hop, and here is the inspiration photo.

I went very literal with my card. Anne (of Green Gables) would say that, "I have no imagination". Lol. I just wanted to try this colour scheme, as it is something I never would have dreamed up on my own. Thanks for looking, and for your kind comments!!

Stamps and Dies: Spring Woods, Grateful Garden, Banner Sentiments

Other: Unibal White Gel pen, white embossing powder, Pencil crayons for details and shading.

Make it Monday #297 - Mixing Florals

I'm glad for another chance to make another Christmas card! Using Dawn's technique, I mixed 4 different sets to make this card, plus a 5th stamp set for the sentiment (Bells and Boughs).

One more card make, another 30 to go!!

PTI Stamps and dies: Painted Poinsettia, Peaceful Pinecones, Holiday Greens, Spruce and Sprigs

Frame is from SSS.

Thanks for looking!

Create Along With Us-Sept. 2017

Wow. I haven't posted a card for at least a couple of months! It's good to be back :)

I loved Nichole Heady's card this morning! Her colours are really unique, and I love the softness of it all. (And I just now realized I've forgotten to add a few clear sequins--you'll have to guess where I put them, later, when I have time.) Here is Nichole's card.


And here is mine.

I've sponged on some Pure Poppy ink over the "O Tannenbaum" tree, as well as around the edge of the Mix and Mat diecut, as the Perfect Pearls just covered up the tree. I like Nichole's card better, but I might try this again with pine sprigs around the outside of the panel, which will be more in keeping with how Nichole has laid hers out. The sentiment is from KIS: Merry Christmas.
Thanks for looking, and for your kind comments!!

Make it Monday #290: Stencils and masks

Can it really be #290 for PTI's Make it Monday's? Wow. Time flies... This week "that Betsy" does it again, with a wonderful idea for one-layer cards. I don't have the stencil she used, so I made one out of the oval in the A2 dies set. I used Humming Along stamp set for the first time, and enjoyed seeing the hummingbird and flowers come to life. (It did take me two tries to get all the bits and pieces lined up properly...sort of...but I didn't have the time to try it a third time.)
So without further ado, here is my effort.

Thanks for looking, and/or leaving encouraging comments!

June 2017 Blog Hop

It's time for Papertrey Ink's monthly blog hop, and there is a wonderful inspiration photo!

Don't you just love those vases and flowers! I would've loved to have painted this whole picture with watercolours, but I just know it wouldn't have been very pretty. I think glass is actually quite difficult to paint. Instead, I used "Just the Jar" stamps and dies, heat embossing the image onto vellum, then used some Copics to colour them in. My PTI ranunculus stamps were too large for this composition, so I substituted flowers from Gathered Garden. I added the glass highlights with a combination of glossy accents and white gel pen. The background is Soft Stone paper. I look forward to seeing what everyone else has done for this challenge!

And here's another look at it in daylight, instead of florescent lighting.

Thanks so much for looking, and I always appreciate your comments.

Create Along With Us-June 2017

I was inspired by Michelle Leone's card, seen here:
I loved the colours she used, but I had one of these Mix and Match diecuts already cut out in Lavendar Moon paper, and since it is Sunday night, and down to the wire, I thought I'd better use it!

So here is what I came up with. I used a few of the Beautiful Berries:Spring diecuts in various shades of PTI inks on top of the Mix and Match diecut. (But I still like the neutrals and greens of Michelle's card better...)

Thanks for looking!

MIM #287: Baby Wipe Inking

Ashley was revisiting the Baby Wipe Inking today, so I decided to give it a try. It was surprisingly easy! My first card is a remake of last week's card, since I dropped it on my black ink pad as I was stamping the inside!  I hate it when that happens... Fortunately,  it was after I had taken a photo of it and posted it for the challenge. Here is last week's card, before the mess!

I took it all apart, and cut it down smaller, which removed the ink splat at the top, and rematted it. I then layered it on the baby wipe background, and "Presto Magic!" a  new card. I like it a lot better, so I guess it was a happy accident. The leaves are a WPlus9 stamp (Peonies).

Inks: Berry Sorbet, Harvest Gold, Pale Peony and Green Parakeet

Stamps: Gathered Garden,  KIS: Birthday

However, since this may not be acceptable for the challenge, and because I wanted to try some different colours, I did another one, using balloons as the focal point, but because I didn't want to cover up all the background, I used vellum and acetate for the balloons. I'm pretty "meh" over this one, but I do like the patterns achieved with the baby wipe method!

Inks: Spring Rain, Aqua Mist, Spring Moss (Balloons sponged with Bright Buttercup, Teal)
Stamps: Sentiment Splits, Harvest Berries (for the dots)
Dies: Shaker Shapes:Balloon

MIM #286: Coordinating Card Pairs

Stephanie has challenged us to create a pair of cards, which coordinate (ie. use similar colours and the same stamp set). Since I haven't used Gathered Garden yet, I chose this set. For the first card, I chose to use just the stamps, and stamped a simple arrangement of flowers, and used Keep It Simple:Birthday to put a sentiment underneath it. It looked too plain to layer it onto a white card base, so I matted it with a piece of coordinating card stock.  I used a Gel pen to add a few details onto the flowers, and a touch of Stickles for the centers of the flowers.

My second card is a shameless Case of Nichole Heady's card, from when this set was released. My photography leaves a lot to be desired, but the sentiment is from an old "Fillable Frames" set.

Thanks for looking, and have a great day!

Papertrey May 2017 Blog Hop

It's time for the monthly Blog Hop at Papertrey Ink, and our inspiration photo is below.

 I loved the soft, watercoloured feel to the photo, as well as the colours. I used Friendship Bouquet, stamps and dies, along with a host of Distress Inks, traditional watercolours, as well as a Copic to add some detail to the flowers. A sprinkling of Nuovo Drops were the finishing touch. 

And here is what I came up with:

For a twist, I stamped the leaves first on the paper, as well as a few flowers, then painted on the coral buds with watercolour paints. 

Then I diecut the same leaves and "smooshed" then into 3 colours of Distress Inks before adhering it loosely to the card front. I like the dimension it gave. Diecut flowers were added, with some tucked behind a few of the branches.

Thanks for looking, and much appreciation for taking the time to leave your comments! Happy hopping!

Make it Monday #282- Stenciled Watercolour Background

Betsy is having us use our stencils this week, to create watercoloured backgrounds. I don't have many PTI stencils, and I didn't "really" do a background, but here is my creation. I used a Tim Holtz stencil and my new Distress Oxide ink (Lipstick) and other Distress inks, to fill in the flowers and stems. I added a spritzed butterfly from "Beautiful Butterflies" and some twine to balance things off. The sentiment is from the new "Keep it Simple: Friendship". A few drops of Glossy Accents finished this card off. This will be going to my good friend, for her upcoming birthday.

Thanks for looking!

PTI April 2017 Blog hop

It's time for the monthly blog hop. The inspiration photo  left me stumped, as these colours are definitely NOT me. However, I accepted the challenge...

I chose to focus on the yellows, oranges and pinks for my flowers, and add some gray leaves. Delightful Dahlias has not seen the light of day for quite awhile, so I decided to use them. I heat embossed the outline images in gold powder, and used my Daniel Smith Watercolours to colour the flowers in. The background panel is Soft Stone and the card base is Stamper's Select White. I added the banner in Blush cardstock with a vellum overlay, and embossed a sentiment from Keep It Simple:Birthdays, in white.

Happy Hopping, and thanks for visiting!!

Make it Monday #281: Patterns Behind Die Cut Windows

Dawn used a pretty stencil behind a die cut window in this week's Make it Monday, and challenged us to do the same. I'm always in need of masculine cards, so I used Guiding Lights stamps and dies, as well as a PTI stencil to make a pattern behind the lighthouse. Here's what I came up with:

Thanks for looking, and for your kind comments! They make my day.

Create Along With Us-April 2017

I liked Lizzie's design, seen here:

And this is what I came up with:

I used some flourishes, since I don't have a hexagonal stamp. I used the same colours as Lizzie, but I like how hers turned out better than mine. I may add some yellow stickles in the centers of the flowers, just to coordinate the yellow throughout the card.

MIM #279: Curved Sentiments

It's time for another Make It Monday, over at Papertrey Ink. Ashley has us curving our straight sentiments to make them curved. My "Inspired: Hope" set hadn't seen any ink, yet, so I decided to use it. I sponged on some ink, added some rays from "Shine" and added a small cross to balance everything out. I added some ribbon (can't remember when I last used ribbon!) because there was an empty space underneath the sentiment. I'm a little "meh" on this card, but there you have it. Thanks for looking!

PTI March 2017 Blog Hop

It's time for PTI's monthly blog hop, with the following colour inspiration, from Victoria Johnson.

I used Fresh Bouquet (again--I have made many cards lately with this set!), and used the colours from the above photo. The background is stamped with leaves from "Turning a New Leaf", stamped in Versamark onto Tropical Teal cardstock. I used my watercolours to paint in the flowers, etc.

I've used GKD Denim cardstock for my card base--sure wish PTI had this colour blue, as Gina K doesn't ship their heavyweight cardstock to Canada anymore. So disappointed! It's a nice, bright navy/ Royal blue, and I only have a few sheets left. 

PTI 10th Anniversary Challenge: Altered Envelopes

I had fun making this card! Love this stamp set and am glad that I finally caved and bought it. I used Zigs to watercolour the flowers on the card, but knowing the envelope wouldn't stand up to water, I used the coordinating stamps with inks to colour in the envelope. I may save this for Mother's Day. Mom is 91, and not doing very well since her stroke last summer.  I want to give her a special card because I don't know how much longer we will have her with us...

PTI's 10th Anniversary: Packaging

I've made a tag for Rebecca's challenge, seen here, using the colours she's used. I stenciled some gold onto the Quilted Tag die, and sponged some Melon Berry ink onto it as well. I then heat embossed Fresh Florals in gold and used my Zig pens to colour it in. Some Berry Sorbet patterned paper gave it some punch, and some gold ribbon from my stash finished it off.

Make It Monday #277:Nail Polish Marbling

Lizzie gave us an interesting technique, and although it was a bit of a challenge, I'm glad I tried it. The results are very striking. I haven't worn any nail polish in a long while, so it's good to use it for something! And just a note in case anyone hasn't tried it yet--it sure needs to be done in a well-ventilated area! Phew... Here is my take on the challenge:

I think I'll be sending this off to my husband's niece, for her birthday on the 17th. Thanks for looking, and for commenting, as your comments make my day :)

MAKE IT MONDAY #276: KRAFT & COLORED PENCILS

It's time for another Make it Monday over at Papertrey Ink, and I've decided to use What the Doodle: Cake, for my image. I used my Prismacolor Pencils to colour in the white, heat embossed image, and added some Wink of Stella. I'd like to try this again with a larger image to colour, like flowers. I think it would be more effective.

 I added some dimensional adhesive behind the cake and the cherry, and layered the panel onto some Berry Sorbet patterned paper for emphasis.

Thanks for looking--have a great day!

Papertrey February Blog Hop Challenge

It's Time for Papertrey's February  Blog Hop Challenge, and here is the inspiration photo. 

While I love the rich colours in the photo, I found it a bit heavy for a card, but gave it a whirl, anyways. Here is my take on the photo. I used Garland Garland to cut out the wreath in Gold Cardstock, and the flowers in various shades of pinks and purples. I heat embossed the sentiment (from Graceful Greetings ll) in gold, right on the Smokey Shadow card base. And you see the fig seeds in the photo? That's why I put all the dots around the wreath! Lol.

I apologize for the horrible photo...I sure wish I had put a different background behind the card, and used a better camera than what my iPad has, but I have to get this posted!!

PTI Stamps: 2016

What do you get when you mix Laurie Willison's card...

...with Melissa's card?

You get my card !   (You can't go wrong Case-ing 2 great designers!!)