Make it Monday #176, Post 2

I had some Aqua Mist-tinted embossing paste left over, so I quickly grabbed another piece of cardstock and did up another embossed background using the Diagonal Coverplate die/stencil. When it was dry, I used my new PTI Brushstrokes stamps to make the flowers and tag. Love the iridescence of this paste!

Thanks for looking :)

Make it Monday #176: Using Embossing Paste and Stencils

Laura Bassen put together her first video here, (congrats, Laura!) and we were invited to use our dies to make our own stencils. I used PTI's Diagonal cover plate to cut a stencil out of acetate, then mixed up some irridescent embossing paste, mixed with a little Aqua Mist reinker. I tried for an ombre effect, going from darker paste, to lighter, but it ended up all looking the same. I guess I went over it too many times, trying to make the coverage even. Live and learn :)
This card is for my 8 yr. old great-niece, so I thought she'd like the 3-D butterflies from Life is Beautiful. I added some rhinestones under the holes on the wings, and some Wink of Stella glitter to the butterfly's vellum layer, as well as to the die-cut "happy". I then put a layer of Glossy Accents onto the diecut.
Thanks for looking!

Make it Monday, #174: Diamond Backgrounds

Well, I must admit that this technique is not really for me... Too lazy to stamp out those intricate backgrounds! I did attempt this, using Versamark and Perfect Pearls, though. I like the watercoloured focal point better than the background, but someone will like receiving it, hopefully.

All materials used are PTI, except for the Versamark ink and Perfect Pearls powder. 

Thanks for looking!

PTI July 2014 Blog Hop #2

For this card, I focussed on the spools of thread and the buttons. The stamps are from an old favourite of mine, "Quilter's Sampler". I coloured the thread with my Copics, and glued on some twine that I coloured with the mint green Copic. The background is done with a stencil and Distress Ink (I didn't have the colour I wanted, unfortunately) and a large stamp from the "Button Up" stamp set. Some Button Stacks dies, and the "Filagree" border die, finish it off.

Thanks so much for looking, and I appreciate any comments! Have a great day!

PTI July 2014 Blog Hop #1

The inspiration photo above left us wide open for ideas. For my first card, I focussed on the gingham envelope, the doily and the red flowers, and came up with this. I used "Sweet Life" and "Mega Gracious Vases". For the background, I used 3 different colours of Distress Inks, swiped across white cardstock, with a few water droplets for some texture. I liked how the background turned out!

Thanks for looking and have a great day! Comments are always welcome.

Make it Monday #173: No Outline Watercolour, No. 3

I couldn't resist! I made another watercolour card this afternoon. I find watercolouring very therapeutic, and besides--it's pouring rain today!
I used the morning glories from PTI's "Year of Flowers: Collection". (I SO wish I had a stamp that said, "His mercies are new every morning", but alas, I don't, so I used a sentiment from "Faith and Hope", instead.) It was probably a mistake choosing such a small, detailed stamp, but once I started, I didn't want to give up. Because the stamp is fairly small, I made the whole card a little smaller, with a card base of 3 3/4" x 5".
Stamps and paper are PTI, and I used watercolour paints to paint the flowers. There are tiny dots of Liquid Pearls as the center of the flowers.

 Thanks for looking!

Make it Monday #173: No Outline Watercolour, No. 2

I actually started this card the other day, but finished today, knowing that it would fit in with the current challenge at Papertrey Ink. I used my new stamps from the "Beautiful Brushstrokes" kit, and my PTI re-inkers to colour it. The leaves were done with Gelatos (my first effort), but I'm not sure I like the effect... I diecut some leaves and put them on top, and coloured them with Gelatos as well as inks. A little better, but the outline is still too visible. I thought Gelatos were supposed to dissolve in water!? (Maybe I need to gesso the paper first?) I think I'll stick to watercolour paint, and inks!

PTI products used are the stamps, leaf and flower dies (Beautiful Brushstrokes), and cardstock.

Thanks for looking, and I always appreciate your comments!

Make it Monday #173:No Outline Watercolour

Heather showed us how to do a "no outline" watercoloured card today, but I guess I had the wrong type of stamp. If I had "no" outlines, then the whole shape of the sweet peas would have been lost. So I ended up painting in the lines! Sure hope that still fits in with the challenge...

All materials are PTI, unless otherwise noted.

Stamps: Year of Flowers: Sweet Peas

Paper: Spring Moss, Lavender (GKD)

Other: Stitched Rectangle die (L'il Inkers), Watercolour paints

Make it Monday #172: Rainbow Medallions

Well, I haven't posted in awhile, but felt like getting crafty today. Papertrey Ink's Make It Monday's challenge is to use a stamp that isn't normally used for medallions. I used a variety of inks (very similar to Dawn's selection of inks) to form a medallion, and used "Fancy Flourishes" to build my medallion. I covered the "mess" in the center with a "Limitless Layers" circle, stamped with the rarely used "Tag-It's #3". It's nice to use some of the older stamps and dies! The panel was matted with black, then put onto a Limeade Ice card base.
Thanks for looking!

Make it Monday #170: Masking with Die Cuts

Papertrey's Make it Monday was all about die-cutting masks in order to stamp "behind" other stamps. I've used PTI's "Year of Flowers: Violets" and watercoloured the violet. I masked the flower to stamp the top leaf, then masked the flower and the top leaf, so that I could stamp the second leaf. I used a bit of Perfect Pearls mist to add some shimmer to the edges of the flower petals, as the petals have this shimmer in real life, and 3 jewel embellishments for the flower center. For cardstock, I used Royal Velvet for the mat, and Soft Stone cardstock for the sentiment and card base. The sentiment is stamped with Royal Velvet Ink.
Thanks for looking!