OLC Flowering Cactus

Hi All,  I missed the fact that this week's Sunday Stamps challenge was suppose to be a single-layer card.  Oops!  So it was a good opportunity to go back and try again.

I cannot do an actual single-layer card, as I need a thicker card base, but I can do a single-layer front panel.

This card highlights a couple things: the stamp sets Flowering Desert (images) and All the Good Things (sentiment) are retiring June 3, and I combined a couple upcoming In Colors.  The layout inspiration came from Erica Cerwin.

Stamps: Flowering Desert, All the Good Things; Paper: Terracotta Tile, Pretty Peacock; Ink: Terracotta Tile, Old Olive, Pretty Peacock, Cajun Craze Stampin' Blends; Accessories: Old Olive Linen Thread, Iridescent Sequin Assortment, Itty Bitty Punch Pack.

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Stampin' Addicts Sale-a-Bration Blog Hop

Welcome to the Stampin' Addicts Sale-a-Bration Blog Hop! We're so excited the Sale-a-Bration annual promotion will be here next Tuesday, and we came together to share some ideas with you using the items you can earn for FREE.  During Sale-a-Bration, you can choose a free gift from the SAB catalog with each $50 you spend.  Choose from six exclusive stamp sets, two patterned papers, coordinating ribbon & button accessories, Project Life, and Blendabilities.  There is something for everyone! 

If you have been following the blog hop in order, you have just come from Tanya's blog featuring the Blendabilities markers.  Tanya always has unique and fun projects!  For my stop, I am highlighting the featured stamp set, Best Day Ever, which coordinates with Best Year Ever designer series paper and ribbon & button accessories.

For the first project, I attempted to make the bokeh background stamp the center of attention.  Being that it was New Year's Eve when I was creating, a Happy New Year card.

I pulled up a pinterest photo for inspiration.  After brayering the background with So Saffron and Crushed Curry, and then sponging some black areas, I stamped the background in various ways.  Some direct stamping, some stamp-off (second generation) stamping.  I also spritzed the stamp with water for a more blended look.  It's all about layering, layering, layering.  I added a little bit of White Craft ink through a circle-punch stencil for some variation.  I'm a little torn on whether the black sponging worked.  What do you think?

Stamps: Best Day Ever, Perfect Pennants; Paper: Very Vanilla, Basic Black, Vellum, Gold Foil sheets; Ink: Hello Honey, Crushed Curry, So Saffron, Basic Black, Versamark, White Craft; Accessories: Gold baker's twine, Gold glitter, Gold EP, Dotted Ribbon Scallop border punch, 1/2" Circle punch, Brayer, Sponges, Balloon framelits, Big Shot, Dimensionals.

The main focus of this stamp set are the two wonderful sentiments.  They really can be the star of the card (or project).  As an example, here is an ultimate one-layer card; I didn't even use adhesive!

This black & white card with a pop of color is inspired by one by Maile Belles, found on pinterest.  I used the latest photopolymer release, Snuggles & Smooches, for the flower squiggles.

Stamps: Best Day Ever, Snuggles & Smooches; Paper: Whisper White; Ink: Calypso Coral, Memento Tuxedo Black, Basic Black marker; Accessories: Best Year Ever Accessories.

I thought the "Best Day Ever" sentiment was perfect for a project for a really special day.  Here I created a wedding favor.

After creating a tag with Best Day Ever images, I created a treat box using the Curvy Keepsake thinlit and the fun Sale-a-Bration embossed specialty paper Irresistibly Yours for an elegant look.

Stamps: Best Day Ever; Paper: Sahara Sand, Whisper White, Irresistibly Yours DSP; Ink: Sahara Sand, Memento Tuxedo Black; Accessories: White baker's twine, Dotted Scallop Ribbon border punch, Curvy Keepsake thinlit, Big Shot.

Make sure you check out the next stop to see what Twila at Stamp A Little Longer put together using the Best Year Ever Accessories Pack. She's made some amazing projects.

 

Sheltering Tree ~ Thinking of You

Several tries at this card, and still it is meh.  My biking buddy hurt himself last week, and I want to send him a card.  One-layer cards are so dangerous, as they get messed up, smudged, etc. so easily.  And now somewhere between my camera and my computer, my photos are getting erased off my memory card. 

Ok, three hours later, hubby was able to recover the photos.  Phew!  I won't lie; I pretty much went ballistic when the long arm of Bill reached into my memory card and altered all the files to unusable garbage.  Yes, everything is still Bill's fault!

This card is a sneak peek of the new Occasions Catalog set, Sheltering Tree.  Don't you love this font?  It doesn't have to be perfectly straight to look good!  ;)

Stamps: Sheltering Tree; Paper: Soft Sky, Whisper White; Ink: Pool Party, Soft Sky, Wisteria Wonder, Cherry Cobbler, Memento Tuxedo Black, Basic Black marker; Accessories: Sponges, White Gel Pen.

The Stamp Review Crew: Serene Silhouettes

Welcome to another Stamp Crew Review Blog Hop!  We share our take on a selected stamp set every first and third Monday.  This time we are hopping along with silhouette set Serene Silhouettes.  If you are hopping around in a circle, you have just come from Kerry's blog.  There is no end to Kerry's creativity!

As a silhouette stamp set, it is perfect for background techniques.  Sponging, brayering, watercoloring... you name it!  Building on the CAS sponged-scene card I made last week, I started off in the same direction.

Keeping to the true one-layer card (minus the base), I kept adding more and more features... clouds, a couple stars, the sentiment.  Remembering Cindy Elam's card using the Note Tag punch and stamps from September's Paper Pumpkin Kit, I ended up sponging and stamping a tombstone via reverse masking.  Score!  This qualifies the card for Mix-Ability #68, Reverse Masking.  For coloring media, I used classic ink, Basic Black marker, and a white gel pen.

Stamps: Serene Silhouettes, Boo-tiful Bags Paper Pumpkin kit, Ghoulish Greetings, Dictionary BG; Paper: Very Vanilla; Ink: Wisteria Wonder, Perfect Plum, Elegant Eggplant, Memento Tuxedo Black; Accessories: White gel pen, Note Tag punch, Circle punch, Sponges, Post-It Notes.

Make sure you check out the next stop to see what lovelies the fabulous Yapha Mason has put together with Serene Silhouettes. 

 

Stampin' Addicts Winter Holiday Blog Hop

Welcome to the Stampin' Addicts Winter Holiday Blog Hop!  Here we will feature projects focusing on the winter holidays.  If you have been following the blog hop in order, you have just come from Tina's blog featuring Christmas Bauble. Weren't her projects adorable?

Today I'm featuring the Festival of Trees stamp set and coordinating punch.  I love stamp and punch combinations!  They lend themselves to super easy and quick cards.  In that vein, I put together a (semi-) clean card.

The All is Calm Suite color combination is so classic and elegant!  I must also mention this stamp set is a 2-step set (another fav!), so you stamp the main image in one color and then add accents with another ink color.  Stamp step 1, stamp step 2, and then punch is really the trifecta of stamping!

Stamps: Festival of Trees, Merry Everything; Paper: Pear Pizzazz, Whisper White, All is Calm DSP; Ink: Pear Pizzazz, Pool Party, Lost Lagoon, Silver Encore, Soft Suede marker; Accessories: Silver ribbon, Mini Staple, Clear EP, Note Tag punch, Tree punch, 2-1/2" punch, On Point EF, Big Shot, Dimensionals.

This set also works great for creating many type of flat cards, such as single layer cards with sponging or embossing, and it is such fun to add snowdrifts with either masking or layers.  I had lots of ideas running through my head; here's one that got committed to paper.

Heather Telford is such wonderful inspiration!

Stamps: Festival of Trees, Good Greetings; Paper: Whisper White; Ink: Wisteria Wonder, Marina Mist, Night of Navy, Memento Tuxedo Black;  Accessories: White Gel pen, Sponges, Circle punch, Post-It Notes.

Carrying through with the triangular shape of the set images, I decided to try a teepee or pyramid card.  I've never made one, and it is pretty quick and easy.

A fun 3-D card for the recipient, this type of card folds flat for mailing.  I found directions online by googling "teepee card".

Stamps: Festival of Trees; Paper: Garden Green, Hello Honey, Whisper White, Trim the Tree DSP; Ink: Cherry Cobbler, Garden Green, Soft Suede, Versamark; Accessories: White & Cherry Cobbler baker's twine, Silver ribbon, Silver EP, Itty Bitty Accents punch pack, Sponge, Dimensionals.

Make sure you check out the next stop to see what Paula Wright put together using Bright & Beautiful. Her projects are always amazing.

 

FM159 Stencils & Retiring Sets

Hi Everyone!  I am hosting today's Friday Mashup.  The challenge is to play with stencils and a retiring set.

Photo by: Heidi 

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project using "Stencils".
2. Create a project with a "Retiring Stamp".
3. Or Mash it up and create a project with " a Stencil and a Retiring Stamp".

A stencil can add wonderful depth to a single-layer card, so I started there.  I actually hit three retiring items with this card.

I masked and used the Very Vintage wheel to create the strip, then sponged with warm colors.  I used a bit of Mother of Pearl technique on the Clockworks clock.  And I used retiring set #3, Loving Thoughts.

I created a 1/4" circle stencil with the e-cutter, and applied embossing paste, following by some spritzing.  This card also satisfies Mix-Ability challenge #53, Loving Layers, which asked for three or more mixed media layers, excluding card stock (stamp images, sponged ink, embossing paste, shimmer paint).

Stamps: Clockworks, Loving Thoughts, Very Vintage; Paper: Tangerine Tango, Peach Parfait, Daffodil Delight, Very Vanilla; Ink: Melon Mambo, Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, Crushed Curry, Black Stazon, Basic Black marker; Accessories: Mini Silver brad, Pearl Jewels, Frost White shimmer paint, Color Spritzer Tool, Aquapainter, Sponges, Stencil, Embossing paste, Beautiful Wings embosslit, Big Shot, Dimensionals.

FM152 Nautical OLC

This week's Friday Mashup, Lisa is challenging us with a single layer, a.k.a. one-layer card (OLC).

Photo Source

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project using a "Nautical Theme".
2. Create a "One Layer Card".
3. Or mash it up and create a project with the "One Layer Card with a Nautical Theme".

Single-layer cards aren't so easy.  Mess it up, and you're starting over.  I did mess up in a minor way, but I forged on.

I started with stamping the ship, and then some masking and sponging with a past Connie & Mary color combination, Summer Starfruit and Pistachio Pudding.  From there, I watercolored the ship, added some Pistachio Pudding sponging with drywall tape, some embossing paste with a stencil, and then splatter a couple different ways.

Obviously a one-layer card is light on paper, so create details with all the different ways you can think of adding ink.  Create texture with overlapping layers, dry embossing and scoring, and stencil techniques.  Masking is also a big part of single-layer cards.  I hope that gets you thinking and you give it a try!

Stamps: The Open Sea, World Map BG; Paper: Very Vanilla; Ink: Summer Starfruit, Pistachio Pudding, Crumb Cake, Cherry Cobbler, Black Stazon, Summer Starfuit marker, Pistachio Pudding reinker, Black Fine Sharpie; Accessories: Aquapainter, Sponges, Color Spritzer Tool, Build A Banner stencil, Embossing paste, Drywall tape, Paint brush, Post-It Notes.

FM125 A is for Autumn

Amy's got us thinking about ABC's and 123's on the Friday Mashup.

Photo Source

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project with using "A-B-C (use elements on your projects starting with the letters A, B, C). "
2. Create a project using a "1-2-3 card recipe (1 embellishment, 2 Stamp Sets, 3 Colors) ."
3. Or Mash it Up and create a project "A-B-C & a 1,2,3 card recipe. "

I shared the card I made a few weeks ago on the Stampin' Addicts Fall Blog Hop, but now you'll get the low-down on how I made it.  First here's how my card shook out.

• A = Autumn
• B = Brayering
• C = Cherry Cobbler, Cajun Craze, and Crushed Curry.

I deviated a little on the 1, 2, 3.

• 1 = layer, yay for me!  Single layer card!  Hey, those aren't easy!
• 1 = accessory, if heat embossing counts
• 2, oops, 3 = stamp sets.  I had to break down and pull out another set for the splatter.
• 3 = (brayered) colors plus a neutral

After stamping and embossing the splatter, I brayered the panel.  I sponged the leaf images onto the panel with the negative part of the Autumn Accents and Secret Garden die-cuts.  The leaf cut-out is the backside of the Magnificant Maple stamp image, which is then sponged.  This card is inspired by tessaduck on Splitcoaststampers.

Stamps: Magnificant Maple, Four You, Gorgeous Grunge; Paper: Whisper White; Ink: Cherry Cobbler, Cajun Craze, Crushed Curry, Early Espresso, Versamark; Accessories: Clear EP, Sponges, Brayer, Secret Garden framelits, Autumn Accents die, Big Shot, Post-Its.

Thanks for stopping by!

Stampin' Addicts Fall Holiday Blog Hop

Welcome to the Stampin' Addicts Fall Holiday Blog Hop! Grab a cup of coffee, sit back, and enjoy a selection of fabulous fall projects from the Holiday seasonal catalog, which was released on August 1.

This is the first time I get to kick off the blog hop - woohoo!  But in case you are following the circle, you have just come from Tina's blog featuring the Envelope Liner Framelits. Didn't she do an amazing job?

If you know me, I love, love, love Fall and fall projects!  I just had to play with the new leaf stamp set, Magnificent Maple, plus the new papers and accessories!  Being that this is a single-image set, it will be a challenge for me.  Come and root me on!  Of course, the first project ya gotta make is a straight-forward card using fun Holiday catalog coordinating products.

Here I sponged the card stock before stamping the leaf, after stamping off once.  I sponged the edges a bit more after fussy cutting.

Stamps: Magnificent Maple, Truly Grateful; Paper: Sahara Sand, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Sweater Weather DSP; Ink: Crushed Curry, Tangerine Tango, Cherry Cobbler, Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Burlap ribbon, Designer Naturals button, Sponges, Circles #2 die, Perfect Pennants die, Big Shot, Sewing machine, Thread, Dimensionals.

How about a card with a bit more of a "trick"?  Here I stamped my leaf image lightly, and cut it out.  I sponged the backside of the leaf as my main image, for a more abstract look.

Stamps: Magnificant Maple, Four You, Gorgeous Grunge; Paper: Whisper White; Ink: Cherry Cobbler, Cajun Craze, Crushed Curry, Early Espresso, Versamark; Accessories: Clear EP, Sponges, Brayer, Secret Garden framelits, Autumn Accents die, Big Shot, Post-Its.

I wanted to try a rustic type box to hold some maple leaf cookies.

I used a shaker box template from the internet and altered it into a basket.  This way you can get a peek at the fun coordinating liner.  I'm going to submit this project over at Ann Marie's fun fall-themed challenge at the Paper Players, anything but a card.

Stamps: Magnificant Maple, Really Good Greetings; Paper: Crushed Curry, Sahara Sand; Ink: Crushed Curry, Tangerine Tango, Sahara Sand, Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Thankful Tablescape kit, Mini silver brads, Sponges.

I hope some of these ideas will help jump start your fall crafting.  If you aren't yet a member of Stampin' Addicts, you can sign up here. Make sure you check out the next stop to see what Kim at Stitchin n Stampin' on Paper put together using Thankful Tablescape Kit. She's made some amazing projects.

 

 

The complete blog hop listing: 

1) Heidi (hlw966) -- Magnificent Maple
2) Kim (s1itcher46) -- Thankful Tablescape Kit
3) Sara (lilyinkpad) -- Sweater Weather DSP
4) Yapha -- Harvest of Thanks
5) Tanya (tanya27) -- Truly Grateful
6) Rhonda (rhondaG) -- Halloween Hello
7) Kathleen (fa_stamper) -- Halloween Bash
8) Mary (MaryR) -- Witches Brew DSP and Washi Tape
9) Paula (scrapshappen) -- Build a Banner Kit
10) Adriana (escape2stamp) -- Oh Goodie
11) Tina (Tina123) -- Envelope Liner Framelits

Thanks for stopping by!

VSN Dog Days of Summer Part II

 

Today's my second installment of cards made for this month's Virtual Stamp Night.  Remember this card I made for the Friday Mashup pencil challenge?

Well, Lydia challenged us with the No Line Coloring Challenge.  I attempted the same stamp image again.

I wasn't thrilled with it and kept adding more and more... eventually adding marker lines.  Ok, that throws the "no line" part out the window.  I tried again.

A little bit less complex of a stamp image went a whole lot better!  It's all a trial-and-error learning process, right?  Quite fun to play, for sure!!

Here's my single layer Father's Day card.  I hope I don't get detention for adding (what I consider to be) embellishments.  :)

You can check out my Splitcoaststampers gallery for all supplies used for each card.  Thanks for stopping by!

A Man's Been Stampin'

Today I'll share with you... a man has been stamping again.  My husband used his Dude, You're Welcome! kit to make a card for his brother.

So far, I've been using the kit, and he'll ask, "Did I give you permission to use my stamps?"

I was bugging him about what type of card to make, bugging, bugging... he finally said, "Use the Dude kit."  "Just put down a boot mark."  "Just use the #%&@! stamp."  Next thing you knew, he had done it himself.  That wasn't so hard, was it?  Alright, I did do the Stamp-a-ma-jig part for him.

It's true... if you buy it, they will stamp!

Stamps: Dude, You're Welcome!, Oh, Hello, Curly Cute;  Ink: Real Red; Accessories: Dude, You're Welcome! kit, boot.

Thanks for stopping by!

Single Layer Convention Swap

This year I was determined not to sign up for swaps at Convention.  I'm not... I'm not.  Ok, I ended up with one.  I thought that wasn't too bad.  I signed up for a single layer card swap for a nice challenge.  Oh boy!  I've already lamented on how they are hard to stamp and embellish.

Here's the one I ended up going with for the swap.

I love the look, but my gosh!  So nerve wracking not to screw it up.

Stamps: French Foliage, Just Believe; Paper: Very Vanilla; Ink: Cajun Craze, More Mustard, Old Olive, Crumb Cake, Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Early Espresso baker's twine, Corner rounder punch, Simply Scored, Sponges.

Thanks for stopping by!