BRING YOUR OWN SUNSHINE

Hello Junkies!!! 

Well, one year ends and another will soon begin.  I hope you all had a blessed and healthy 2016 and I wish you all that much and more in 2017.  

I fell in love with this stamp "Bring Your Own Sunshine" when I first saw it in the TJ March 2016 release.  I loved the simplicity of it and thought it could take on many background ideas.  

I dragged out my POSCA Markers and had some fun.  My inspiration came from this image I found on Wayfair.  I've seen a technique called crayon melting to achieve this look on canvas, but I thought I'd try it with the markers and while the look is different, I liked the results.  Plus, it was fun playing with the markers!  

Here are two cards I made using this inspiration and my Posca markers.  

I used some Distress Inks to sponge the bg for the stamp after stamping it with VersaFine black and heat embossing it with clear embossing powder.  I splattered the bg with water drops then blotted them up with a paper towel to get the watery marks.  The bg is simply scribbling in various colors with the markers.  I really do love those pens.  They're acrylic paint in a pen and they're so much fun to play with.

Same idea for this card, except I colored the boots with some Copic markers to make them pop. As you can see, I used the pens to emulate the inspiration piece itself.  

On Monday, January 1, Technique Junkies will be releasing NEW stamps for January 2017.  There will be a blog hop starting at the Technique Junkies Blog and a big discount on the new stamps. You don't want to miss it.   

Have a crafty day and a HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! 

INK SWIRLS

Hello Junkies, 

I'm here with a quick post...I wanted to show you a really easy and fun technique that I discovered while playing with my Technique Junkies stamps today.  I'm not claiming this is my technique....I'm sure someone some where has done this....It just came to me while playing with my inks today.

This is the same technique for both cards, just using different colored inks....who doesn't want to find new ways to use all those colored inks we have in our stash???  

Check it out.  The stamps I used for both cards was #SD611 "To The Moon" and #S656 "Celestial Dangles". 

The technique I used for this might be called soft and swipe.  I first inked the bg stamp with a light color dye ink then before stamping it on a white card base, I swiped a darker  shade of the same color family on the lighter ink, then stamped it.  I used my MISTI, so once I'd stamped the first time, I then took the lighter ink and (didn't clean the stamp) inked it up again and stamped over the image.  It popped the color amazingly.  For an additional touch, I took my Delicata Silver Shimmery pigment ink and swiped it down (vertically) across the entire panel.  I don't think the photo shows the incredible look of this, but it's quite gorgeous in real life.  For a final touch I added some sequins for sparkle and shine.  

Thanks so much for stopping by today.  Head to the TJ Pinterest page and load up with inspiration.  

Merry Christmas and Happy Crafty New Year!  

ROCK STAR SPOTLIGHT

Hello blog friends!!! 

The House That Stamps Built is taking a break from the usual projects and challenges this month to bring back their Rock Star Spotlight series. This is a fun way to get to know all the Design Team members a little better. So each Monday and Wednesday throughout December they will be featuring a different Rock Star and showing off some of their latest creations too.

Please be sure to visit The House often and leave a little love in the comments of each Rock Star Spotlight. Wendy will be awarding a $25 Repeat Impressions gift certificate to one random commenter. Every comment earns you another chance to win. So visit and comment often. The winner will be announced on The House That Stamps Built blog the first Monday of next month.

Today is my day and the spotlight is shining on me!  I've been making Christmas cards with Repeat Impressions stamps....I've got three to show you.  

This card is an attached side panel that I sponged lightly with Distress Inks.  The image is RI# 2002-J "Holiday Lamp Post" that I heat embossed with gold ep.  I used Spellbinder A2 Bracket Borders Two dies to create the decorative panel and cut another for accent in gold cs.  The sentiment is RI#413-H "Let Heaven" .  I used some gold glimmer spray for some accent in the bg as well as my gold gel pen.  The star is a Memory Box die called "Star of Wonder".  

This santa makes me smile and I love using him on my Christmas cards....there's so much joy in his face!  He's RI#302-C "Holly Santa" and the sentiment is RI#2214-H "Ho, Ho, Ho".  The background was created by inking up an embossing folder and running it through my Vagabond.  I created the snowbanks using a die cut from Mama Elephant.  

Final card...thanks for sticking with me.  This card is my attempt at CASE'ing the fabulous Laura Bassen.  Somewhere I've seen her do a card like this and it was so much fun!!!  The stamps are RI#3814-K "Ornament Frame" , first stamped on the layering panel with just black ink, leaving a bare area.  I then stamped them again on another panel and sponged those with Distress Inks of various colors and fussy cut them out.  I then used RI#8805-K "Snowflakes", sprayed them with water and before the DI were dry, I stamped them onto the ornaments.  Next I simply glued the cut ornaments to the areas I'd stamped on the clean layer. I stamped and fussy cut the tops of the ornaments from glittery paper scraps.  I used my Sharpie pen and ruler to draw in the "strings".  To make them stand out a little more, I used my Shapie pen and went around each ornament.

Now please hop on over to The House to read my responses to the fun questionnaire Wendy had me fill out. Then be sure to leave a comment there for your chance to win the gift certificate.

Thanks so much for stopping by and I wish you all a very Merry Chirstmas and the healthiest and happiest of New Years!!! 

JOY TO THE WORLD

Hello everyone!  

My post today is just a fun card I made as part of my Christmas cards this year.  I CASE'd the idea from Laura Bassen and THIS card she made.   I didn't have all of the products she used so I used what I had.   I changed up the colors and my sponging is not at all as soft and gorgeous as her's, but I liked the way it turned out.

For this card I used, Memory Box "Bubble Arch", Distress Inks, Ranger watercolor paper and Papertrey Ink, "Wet Paint Holiday"  stamps and dies.  I die cut the arch and the word "joy" in MFT, "Brushed Silver" metallic paper.    

I'm entering this card in Memory Box Challenge #19 - Marvelous Metallics.  

Thanks so much for stopping by!  

DAY 29 OF 30 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS AT TECHNIQUE JUNKIES

Hello everyone!!!! 

There's still one more day to get that 25% off all the awesome Christmas stamps that Technique Junkies has in their store, grab them while you can and enjoy the discount!  

It's been 30 days full of inspiration and creativity by the TJDT and I've enjoyed each and every one.  

For my last post during this event, I have some bookmarks to show you and a card.

This is a front and back shot of the bookmarks.  I used some coordinating scrap pieces of design paper to cover the backs.  The stamps I used for the bookmarks is SS029 "Christmas Words" set of 4 stamps.  The technique to create them is the easy white embossed image and sponging Distress Inks over the image to create a resist. Adding some water splatters to the sponged ink gave them a "vintage" look.  I like these as card inserts for Christmas cards to special friends.  

The face on this puppy just cracks me up.  Another easy card.  The background was splattered with white acrylic paint and once dry, I sprayed with some glimmer spray. I stamped "Ho, Ho, Ho Dog" on 80# white cardstock with Archival black ink using my Misti.  In order to get a good coverage, I stamped it 3 times...I wanted him to pop right off the cs.  I made a mask and covered him while I sponged a bg with Distress Ink.  I again splattered some water and soaked it up with paper towels then heat dried it.  I decided to add some "snow" to match the red bg, so I took my white pen and dotted it in the bg.  I used Copics to color his scarf and paper pieced his hat with some red glittery paper.  To frame him, I used MFT stitched arch Stax.  As a final touch, I added some sequins to the bg and some glossy accents to his nose and eyes.

There you have it!!!!  I hope I've inspired you and I hope you don't miss grabbing youself some of these fabulous stamps.  

Cheers!

MORE 30 DAYS OF CHIRSTMAS FROM TECHNIQUE JUNKIES

Hey there, blog friends....have you been following the 30 Days of Christmas event over at the Technique Junkies blog?  

There has been a daily post full of TJ Christmas stamps (which you can still purchase for 25% off your entire order) and techniques.  

I wanted to show you two of those stamps in this post and my creations with them.  

This card was super simple to create (you gotta love those).  Stamped with VersaMark, sprinkled with silver embossing powerder then heat set.  I then placed the panal in a embossing folder (Musical Flourishes from CuttleBug) and layered it on a accent layer then on the card base.  The stamp is "Peace on Earth Dove".

This card was another easy one.  The image was stamped on white cs, colored with copics and as I did with the other one, I embossed it with Swiss Dots ef.  I used a set of Spellbinder ovals to cut windows and the focal image and assembled the card.  I added some Glossy Accents to the berries, which gave them added demension.  This stamp is a wonderful CAS stamp.  It's called "Mistletoe".

Hard to believe that Christmas Day is only 19 days away....

Thanks so much for stopping by.  Enjoy your week!!!

CHRISTMAS COW

Hello Junkies!!!  It's almost Christmas and I'm here celebrating 30 Days of Christmas with you and my 'bovine' party animal!!!  The celebration goes until December 14.

I used my artistic license to transform the giraffe in this "Safari Santa" stamp 

into a cow!  As a matter of fact, a holstein cow.  I'm sure it was sketched and designed to be a giraffe due to the title, so I hope I don't insult the artist.  I just couldn't help myself.  We live on a farm, and while we don't have livestock (including cows) of our own, each summer my husband's cousin uses our farmland to graze some if his holsteins.  So, I saw a cow in this stamp.  

I used Copic Markers to color this entire image, including the blue sky background.  I don't know if the photo shows the Wink of Stella highlights I put on the hat and furry cuff, but it really gives it a gimmery touch.  After framing it with brushed gold cs using a stitched square frame die, both are from MFT, I mounted that layer on a barn red cs layer I'd embossed to look like a barn.  I then punched out some snowflakes and stars in glitter paper to add as random embellishments.  The sentiment is Merry Christmas 2, which was stamped in VersaMark and then heart embossed with white ep.  

I hope you're finding as much inspiration from the 30 Days of Christmas as I am. And don't miss the 25% off all Christmas Stamps from now until December 14.  

Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to stop by tomorrow when Ro will continue the celebration.  

NOVEMBER 2016 ANYTHING GOES CHALLENGE AT THE HOUSE THAT STAMPS BUILT

Hi there blog friends!!! 

Here we are with another Wednesday Challenge from The House That Stamps Built. This week (because there's a 5th Wednesday in the month) it's the ever popular anything goes challenge!!!  

I'm doing my best to get some Christmas cards created and I absolutely love to use Repeat Impressions Christmas stamps for them.  

How cute is this stamp, RI#2004-L "Holiday Preparations"  I'm going to make more cards using this stamp as it brings a feeling of Christmas joy with it.  The sentiment is RI#2203-H "May Your Heart", and I did what I do often, I only used a portion of the stamp.  

So, what are you waiting for?  Come on over and play...it's anything goes!  All the details for entering and how you can WIN a $25.00 GC for Repeat Impressions Stamps can be found at The House.  

Don't miss the incredible creations these Rock Stars have made.

Deonna - Heather - Joy - Kathy - Laurie - Patti J - Shirley

Sadly, we are bidding Kathy Stacy a fond "good bye" to our design team this week.  She has inspired me beyond description and I will miss her here. 

Thanks so much for stopping by!  Watch for some fun things coming up this month from The House.  

  

NOVEMBER SKETCH CHALLENGE AT THE HOUSE THAT STAMPS BUILT

Hi there blog friends!!! 

 Here we go with another fun Wednesday Challenge from The House That Stamps Built. This week it's a sketch challenge and we hope you'll join in.  Flip it, twist it, just have fun with it.  

I kept to the true sketch for my card.  

The Repeat Impressions stamps I used on this card are RI#8902-L "Moose Snow Globe".  I used only the globe part of this stamp.  The sentiment is RI#8909-G "Magical Christmas".  I also used the Flip Stitched Die Set to create the bg.  

After stamping my image on watercolor paper with Archival black ink, I watercolored it with Inktense pencils.  After it was dry, I used a technique called "Delft Tiles".  The sentiment is embossed with white ep.

Thank you for stopping by, and I hope you'll play along with our sketch challenge this week.  There's a $25.00 GC up for grabs for your choice of RI stamps.  All the details are at The House.  

And just in case you can't wait to win the challenge, you can get a 10% discount by using the code rr10cs when you place an order.  

To see more inspiration, visit these awesome Rock Stars.

Deonna - Heather - Joy - Kathy - Laurie - Patti J - Shirley

I wish all my fellow American's a very Happy Thanksgiving Day tomorrow!  

O HOLY NIGHT AT 30 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS AT TECHNIQUE JUNKIES

Hey there, Junkies!!!  

I'm here with a new post for the 30 Days of Christmas that's happening at Technique Junkies Blog until December 14.  

There's a BIG 25% OFF SALE going on right now for any of the stamps in their Christmas catagory....you don't want to miss it, there are some truly fabulous Christmas stamps in this collection.  

Here's a card I made that I'd like to share with you using the "Stars Are Brightly Shining" stamp

I thought the "galaxy" technique might work with this stamp, so I gave it a shot and I loved it.  I used Distress Inks to achieve my bg.  After drying the base, I inked up with VersaMark to stamp the image before sprinking white embossing powder over it and heat embossing.  I then used my Viva Gitter Pen to add some sparkle to the bg.

I hope you're enjoying the 30 days of Christmas.  Now go enjoy some shopping and add some incredible Christmas stamps to your collection. 

NOVEMBER 2016 INSPIRATION CHALLENGE FROM THE HOUSE THAT STAMPS BUILT

Hi there blog friends!!! 

Here we are with another Wednesday Challenge from The House That Stamps Built.

This week it's a photo inspiration challenge and we hope you'll join in on the fun. 

Take a look at the photo and create a project that is inspired by it.  

 My inspiration came from the textures I saw here...the clapboard bg, the pumpkin, the straw, the leaves and of course the colors.  

For this card I used RI Stamps #514-I "Prize Pumpkin"  and my sentiment is Ri#1140-E "Thanksgiving".  My leaves were die cut from a Impression Obsession die.  

I hope you'll grab some craft time and play along with our challenge....let your creativity emerge and join the challenge.  The details are at The House.  And don't miss the shopping discount on my sidebar for your entire order of Repeat Impressions Stamps.  

I'm so fortunate to be on the team with this group of incredibly talented ladies and they're ready to show you how this photo inspired them.  

Deonna - Heather - Joy - Kathy - Laurie - Patti J - Shirley

Thanks so much for stopping by.  

30 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS AT TECHNIQUE JUNKIES BLOG

Hello Junkies....Welcome to the start of 30 Days of Christmas

Every day from today through December 15, the Technique Junkies Design Team will be posting a Holiday-themed project to this blog to inspire your creative muse! I am happy to be kicking off the festivities.

  Since becoming a "Junkie" and a subscriber to the awesome "Technique Junkie Newsletter" many years ago, I have saved each and every copy.  Often, throughout those years I've refer back to them for all sorts of ideas.  Even my own ideas come to me after reading and re-reading the techniques in these newsletters.  

I have many 'favorite' techniques in those newsletters, and one of them is Vintage Art. (TJ Newsletter June/July 2011).  I thought the 'Pinecones' stamp from the October 2016 relase was a perfect stamp for this technique, so I gave it a try and I loved it!  

 To stamp the image, I used black Archival Ink and sponged the bg using the recommended inks and colors in the tutorial.   After sponging, I used my white gel pen to highlight the edges of the pinecones.  This was truly an easy card to create.  For an elegant finishing touch, I framed it with MFT 'Brushed Gold Cardstock', the 'Stitched Rectangle Frame' also from MFT.  

Thanks so much for stopping by.  I hope you have a crafty day!  Keep following the TJ blog each day for the entire month and you'll see some amazging techniques and Christmas cards.  

DESIGNER'S CHOICE CHALLENGE FROM THE HOUSE THAT STAMPS BUILT

Hello everyone!!! 

It's time for a designer's choice challenge from The House That Stamps Built and this time it's my turn to pick the challenge for us.  My challenge is to create a "Be Thankful" card.  

We've had a glorious fall this year here in Maine, and wanted my card to honor the fabulous colors and the gorgeous weather we've had this year.  

The stamps I used for my card are RI#3306-I "Falling Leaves" and RI#3213-G "For The Beauty".  I created the background with Brushos on watercolor paper, then I stamped the falling leaves stamp across the panel in sepia colored Archival Ink.  I then used the Flip Stitched Die Set to create a window on another white panel.  I layed it over the colored layer, then added the sentiment.  For interest and detail, I die cut the leaves out of pieces of scraps left from the bg piece and used a Sakura clear gel pen along the edges of the leaves.  The die is Impression Obsession die 030-S.  (There's no name on the die).  I mounted the two panels on a brown cardstock base.  

Now you don't want to miss what these incredibly talented rock stars have done, so please stop by and say hello.

Deonna - Heather - Joy - Kathy - Laurie - Patti J - Shirley

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you'll play along in the DCC challenge this week.  There's a lot for us to be thankful for.  If you'd like to join our challenge, please visit The House for the details.  And don't miss the discount code on my sidebar if you'd like to purchase some Repeat Impression Stamps.  

EMBOSSED CHRISTMAS CARD

Hello blog friends!!! 

I wanted to show you a Christmas card I created with one of the new Technique Junkies Chistmas stamps from the October 2016 Release.  

I LOVE how this turned out and it's one that would be so easy to recreate and make multiples of.  

This is a double embossing technique.  I first stamped the image in VersaMark watermark ink on a light blue card panel, then heat embossed it with white embossing powder.  Using a embossing folder I've had for many years, that has the image of a Chirstmas tree on it, I centered the panel in the folder and ran it through my embossing machine.  To give it more detail, I added some Wink of Stella around the image...it gave it some depth. So easy!!!   

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you get some time to get inky this week!!! 

NOVEMBER COLOR CHALLENGE AT THE HOUSE THAT STAMPS BUILT

Hi there blog friends!!! 

 Here we are with another Wednesday Challenge from The House That Stamps Built. This week it's a color challenge and we hope you'll join in on the fun. 

These colors, at first glance, bored the daylights out of me then I started playing with them and before I knew it...I was on happy mountain.  

My card features Repeat Impressions Stamp #10201-W "Flower Power Background"which I stamped on kraft card stock in VersaMark embossing ink then heat embossed it with gold embossing powder.  Using 3-4 different YR Copic Markers I colored the flowers.  For interest I used MFT Blueprint #15 die, then added some rat tail twine.  I then used dimensional tape and mounted the floral layer onto a stitched die cut kraft panel (from the same Blueprints set).  The sentiment is RI#1105-E "Thinking of You".

You can find all the details on how to enter this challenge and each challenge every Wednesday at The House.  

Here is a group of incredibly talented ladies ready to show you what they've created for this color challenge.  You'll be so inspired by them. 

Deonna - Heather - Joy - Kathy - Laurie - Patti J - Shirley

Thank you so much for stopping by.  I hope to see you in our challenge.  

I'm also entering this in the Simon Says Wedensday Challenge "Thinking of You".