At Home with the Old, New, Borrowed & Blue

front of card

close-up of image showing textured glossy

cardstock used for mounting image on

inside of card

close-up showing paper piercing & linen effect

on the blue & pink papers

This was my first experience of a Belles 'n Whistles stamp - one of the photopolymer clear stamps. I have never encountered such quality in a clear stamp as it stamped perfectly & I had none of my usual pressure trouble. Since I'm short with small hands I stamp standing up & (contrary to all advice to stamp on a cushioned surface) onto a hard surface (normally my glass mat). I have tried so many different methods & this one works for me.

The following - in coloured italics - concerns my personal experience using ProMarkers & Copics. I include it as someone may find it useful & I know that I have benefitted hugely from reading of other people's experiences. Nevertheless the section is quite lengthy & can easily be skipped.

The other revelation for me was using my Copics. Having found a number of tutorials using the ProMarkers & that whenever I tried to follow a Copics one, though I have all the Ciaos, I was invariably missing a colour that was being used for it was not available in the Ciao format, I decided to purchase the two Stamping sets of ProMarkers & then the Skin Tones set & to proceed that way. I've struggled with the bleeding over the stamped image edge despite using the "correct" cardstock & also with my limited selection of colours but nevertheless have been thoroughly enjoying the learning process. Lack of pinks, discovering the information on Color me Copic & the gift of a Suzanne Dean on-line colouring class for me to start in August  made me attempt the Ciaos again yesterday. No bleeding, on the exact same cardstock I was using with the ProMarkers & I delighted in being able to cut out my image with a little white border. I did use the white Inkssentials gel pen for edging this time (I'd been colouring outside using a tray resting on my knees & sitting on a hill with a 45 degree gradient) which I prefer not to but that was another difference for the gel pen had been inadequate when used with the ProMarkers. I also love the brush tip of the Copics & the fine detail possible with it.

In an ideal world one would wish to have both a complete set of ProMarkers & all the Copics colours (which are available in the more expensive Sketch format) for the colours are different - the ProMarkers seeming to be more subtle in their colouration - in fact  the pens handle differently too & for some people the ProMarkers will be easier to hold. Basically it is a matter of personal preference & I count myself fortunate to have been able to experience & compare the two.

I have flipped the Sketch Saturday sketch sideways & as there is nothing square about my card I am submitting it to the Cute Card Thursday Challenge #15. The image of the girl hugging her teddy evokes thoughts of comfort & home for me & taking the concept even further I am going to be very "at home" developing my use of Copics & supplementing my Ciaos with Sketch colours.

Recipe
Stamp Belles 'n Whistles Beary Big Hugs.
Inks etc... Memento Tuxedo Black (image). Black Soot Distress Ink & Brilliance Moonlight White, Pearlescent Orchid & Pearlescent Sky Blue for inking cardstock & paper edges.
Colouring Copic Ciaos, Inkssentials White Opaque Pen.
Cardstock Moondust black, textured glossy black, & Moondust white from "stash".
Papers Moondust white & linen effect papers in blue & pink from "stash.
Punches Fiskars (border), Woodware (circle & scalloped circle), EK Success (scalloped corners).
Ribbon Woodware
Pearls Kanban

Challenges Entered
Belles 'n Whistles - Ribbon 'n Punches
Colour Create #46 - Bay Pink & Pastel Blue + Something Soft (the ribbon is my soft element & the teddy bear image is "soft" by association)
Cute Card Thursday #116 - Anything but Square! (my card is rectangular & nothing on it is square in shape)
Paperplay Wk 23 - Home (see above)
Sketch Saturday #107 - Sketch
By the Cute & Girly June Challenge - Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue (old: Brilliance inkpads bought at the very first craft fair I attended 18 months ago, new: the stamp, borrowed: sketch, blue: paper & pearls)

Fairytale Sugar Bowl

front of card

close-up of image

close-up of bear embellishment

inside of card

This was created as a little girl's birthday card using the sketch & colour scheme of The Sugar Bowl challenge. In order to enable me to enter the Passion For ProMarkers challenge I purposely did not supplement my ProMarker collection of 25 with Copics for the colouring. The bear embellishments were made by cutting 3 indidual bears from a ribbon of them & mounting each individually onto a punched piece of cardstock.

Recipe

Stamp Sugar Nellie Manga Goldilocks.
Inks etc... Memento Tuxedo Black, Distress Inks (Worn Lipstick & Black Soot) for inking paper & cardstock edges.
Colouring ProMarkers, Letraset Black Fine Line Drawing Pen, Inkssentials White Opaque Pen.
Cardstock Moondust Black, black & white from "stash".
Papers Joanna Sheen Gingham. Paper Pad.
Punches/Dies Woodware (scalloped circles), EK Success (small circles/dots), Spellbinders Nestabilities Large Deckled Rectangles.
Black bear ribbon & pearls from "stash". 

Challenges Entered
The Sugar Bowl Challenge 36 - Lilian's Sketch + Theme: Pink, Black & White
Crafts & Me #6 - Friends & Family (birthday card for a friend's young daughter)
Passion For ProMarkers Wk 55 - Pink Birthday
Rosie D's #72 - Fairytales (Goldilocks & the 3 bears)
Simon Says Stamp - Recipe: 1 Image, 2 Patterned Papers, 3 Types of Embellishments (papers are 2 sizes of pink checks, embellishments are the bears, the small punched black circles & the black pearls)
Stamp Something - Happy Something (girl's birthday card but it is also a happy image & evocative of childhood fairy tales with happy endings)

Bunny Zoe's New Challenge & High Hopes

Bunny Zoe's Crafts has a new dedicated Monthly Challenge Blog with the first challenge being announced next Monday, 14th June. A number of overseas stamp companies (Wags 'n Whiskers, High Hopes Rubber Stamps & Bildmalarna to name but a few) that are an interesting addition to our Brisish repertoire are stocked by Bunny Zoe's Crafts. Coincidentally, also on the 14th,  High Hopes Rubber Stamps  has a Blog Hop & Release.

Brayering Difference

front of card

inside of card

This was for someone who doesn't do cute, butterflies or dragonflies. He is what I would describe as an "English Gentleman". This is what I came up with after playing about with the brayer.

Recipe
Stamps Elusive Images Tall Trees UA5SP0252
Inks etc... Kaleidacolor Berry Blaze, Memento Tuxedo Black (Tree Groups), Encore Ultimate Metallic Silver (leaves), Black Soot Distress Ink (inking black cardstock edge), Brilliance Starlite Silver (inking edges of all remaining cardstock elements except card base).
Cardstock White, black & Moondust silver from "stash".
Punches Woodware (leaves, circle & scalloped circle).

Challenges Entered
My Time To Craft #95 - Xtra Special (see above explanation)
One Stop Craft Challenge #83 - Make your own DP

Joyful Whiff of Boyhood

front of card

close-up of image &  heat embossed black cardstock

close-up showing 2 star buttons, button embellished glittered

cardstock star & mesh-type ribbon

inside of card

It wasn't long after I first discovered blogs & the colouring of stamped images that I came across Whiff of Joy stamps, Katharina's blog & the accompanying Whiff of Joy Tutorials & Inspirations blog. I have learnt much from these & the accompanying Challenge blog. Katharina recently released a free digi image for her Followers & also has a candy draw (open until 8pm GMT 12th June) of 2 Whiff of Joy Store Kits.

This is my first entry into a Whiff of Joy challenge & having expected to keep using the same image for subsequent challenges I was thrilled to be told that I should order some stamps now for my birthday (not until August) & to start using them as soon as they arrive.

The Whiff of Joy challenge #80 sketch is by Donalda & I have based the colour scheme on the Crafty Cardmakers challenge of using my least liked & most favoured colours. That was quite a tall order for me as I like anything to do with colour, including black & white. I have noticed that I rarely make a card where yellow is predominant & I that I use black without thinking about it. So, for the purposes of this exercise I used black & yellow. The other factor that influenced my card construction was the Spider Henry Image for it reminded me of the brick-like stamp, the two checked papers & the mesh-type ribbon that I had amongst my craft supplies. All these seem to carry connotations of Spiderman. Since the card has a masculine theme I have used stars to embellish with - rummaging amongst the buttons for a suitable size with which to embellish 3 punched stars I delightedly came across just 2 (!) star shaped buttons. This card definitely had a life of its very own.

Recipe

Stamps Whiff of Joy Spider Henry digi (image), Elusive Images Texture Blocks themeplate UA4SP0150 (brick pattern on black cardstock). 

Inks etc... Memento Tuxedo Black, Distress Inks (Aged Mahogany & Black Soot) for inking most paper & cardstock edges, VersaMark watermark stamp pad, VersaMarker watermark pen, Stampendous Detail Black Embossing Powder

Colouring ProMarkers, Letraset Black Fine Line Drawing Pen, Stickles Glitter Glue (Xmas Red).

Cardstock Textured black, Moondust black, black, white & maroon from "stash". 

Papers Provo Craft French Country Colors Bitty Scrap Pad.

Punches Woodware (large star & scalloped square), EK Success (scalloped corners), Xcut (small stars "waste" from a corner punch).

The red metallic thread that Henry hangs from is Gutermann Sulky (apologies - I am unable to access the correct foreign characters), the buttons are Woodware, the brads are from an embellishment kit of unknown origin & the mesh-type ribbon that Henry is mounted on is from "stash".

Challenges Entered

Whiff of Joy #80 - sketch

A Spoon Full of Sugar #105 - Celebrations! (Father's Day or Masculine birthday card)

Crafty Cardmakers # 22 - Least & Most (see above)

Cupcake Craft #94 - Dazzle Us (glittered star, shiny red metallic thread, sparkly gold mesh-type ribbon & shiny gold brads) 

Delightful Sketches & Challenges - Texture (textured black cardstock, stamped & heat embossed black cardstock, mesh-type ribbon, buttons & brads)

I Love ProMarkers #17 - Recipe: 2 different papers, 3 buttons & 1 ribbon

Magical Crafts #16 - Metal Madness (red metallic thread, brads, gold mesh-type ribbon)

Passion for ProMarkers Wk 54 - Books (one of the DT samples was made using Spider Henry)

Pile It On #22 - Quirky, why not? (a mouse dressed up as Spiderman is even quirkier than the quirky Spiderman himself)

Simon Says Stamp - Father's Day/Male Card

The Shabby Tea Room #13 - 'Just for Dad'

ETA 8/6 I had it marked on my manual list but forgot when posting

Stamp Something - Digi

LOTV NEW STAMP RELEASE 1st JUNE 2010

Tuesday 1st June is the date for the fabulous new release from Lili of the Valley, there are 12 new designs – 4 Dressing Up Girls, 4 Boys, 2 Babies and 2 Get Well Designs, they will also be reducing Overseas Postage to £3.5o and orders of £25 will get free shipping from 1st June.


See here for details of blog candy 27-29th May 2010.

ETA 30/5 And here for details of blog candy 30-31st May 2010.

Gatefold of Salad Piled Onto Blue China

front of gatefold card

  

 main panel based on sketch

close-up of smaller shrink plastic flowers 

 

close-up showing larger shrink plastic flower, textured Moondust

cardstock & linen effect blue paper 

gatefold card open showing decorated side & centre panels

 

close-up of message panel & embellishments

showing the sheen of  Moondust card base

 

The ninth challenge at the Sugar Nellie Splitcoaststampers forum is to make a gatefold card. My main panel is based on the Friday Sketchers sketch which I have turned 180 degrees (I am hoping it is permissible to use the sketch as an element of the whole card) whilst the card's colour scheme carries a fair amount of symbolism inspired by the theme of "Eat Your Veggies" for the Pile It On challenge. Basically the colours are those of salad vegetables (the deep purple & white of red chicory, pink of radishes, orange & red of capsicums, pale green of lettuce, red of tomato to mention a few) on a blue & white china plate eaten with gold coloured metal cutlery. I also used the linen effect blue paper & Antique Linen Distress Ink to further the "table linen" connotations.

The shrink plastic flowers were made by punching the shrink plastic prior to shrinking & afterwards using dots of Stickles Glitter Glue or adhesive pearls for the centres. For the medium & large flowers I mounted the shrunk shrink plastic onto punched cardstock.

I used a circle punch to punch two flowers from the patterned paper & mounted these on two scalloped circles to make the embellishments for inside the card below the message panel.

The edges of the sketch panel are inked as are all the remaining paper & cardstock elements excepting the base card. The various inks are listed below & the colours were matched  according to the colour of the paper/cardstock.

Recipe

Stamp Sugar Nellie Gorjuss Poppy Fields.

Inks etc... Memento Tuxedo Black, Antique Linen Distress Ink, ColorBox Ice Blue Fluid Chalk, Brilliance Pearlescent Sky Blue & Brilliance Rocket Red Gold.

Colouring ProMarkers, Letraset Black Fine Line Drawing Pen, Stickles Glitter Glue (Xmas Red).

Cardstock Bright Gold Cream Moondust & Textured Bright Gold Cream Moondust, cream, blue & red from "stash".

Papers Linen effect blue paper from "stash", patterned - Papermania Retro Paper Kit.

Punches Woodware (scalloped oval, circles & scalloped circles, shrink plastic flowers), Xcut (blue flowers), EK Success (red flowers).

Pearls Kanban.

Challenges Entered

Sugar Nellie Splitcoastampers 9 - Gatefold card

Cupcake Craft #93 - Summer Delights (salads - see above)

Friday Sketchers #104 - sketch

Passion For ProMarkers Wk 53 - Anything Goes

Pile It On #21 - Eat Your Veggies (see above)