Hedgies in Flight!

This is the last card we're going to be making in our "Spook-Tacular Halloween" class at the store. It's hard to pick a favorite, as all of the images have been so cute this year. Once again, colored with watercolor pencils and a blender pen. The "moon" is made by cutting a large circle with a Spellbinders die and then sponging a little orange around the edges. The words are also from Penny Black - with a ribbon covering a line that is part of the words. I stamped a spiderweb in silver on the black cardstock in both upper corners. The hardest part of this card is cutting out the hedgehogs! It really makes the card!

Thanks for stopping by!
Jeannette

Layered Background Stamps from Impression Obsession

This is another card I made a weekend wholesale show. This is a card from Impression Obsession and it is several of their large background images stamped multiple times to create a wonderful pattern. The beauty of this technique is that you can choose your colors to go with whatever you design is. You are not limited by pre-made designer paper! A lot of the backgrounds from I-O work wonderfully together. Look for more samples using this technique and an upcoming class!

Have a wonderful stamping day!
Jeannette

Cute Bunny Box from The Cat's Pajamas

I made this adorable little gift box at a class taught by The Cat's Pajamas this past weekend! It is simple and also uses two of the new dies now being designed by TCP. Of course, I had to order the stamps and dies! They might be in the shop as early as the first week of October. We will also be using some of these cute bunnies in a class in November. Fun images that can be used for holiday cards, as well as just some fun winter cards. Be sure to check them out!

Thanks for visiting the blog today!
Jeannette

Distress Stickles - What is the Difference?

If you're a stamper or a paper crafter, you know what Stickles by Ranger is. I am scared to guess the amount of Stickles that has been applied to cards, scrapbooks and all other forms of art. But now there is Tim Holtz Distress Stickles. What's the difference? And why does it look so different in the bottle?

Let's start with regular Stickles. Regular Stickles comes in a wide range of colors and you can see the bling in the bottle. Stickles is made with mylar glitter. Mylar is a plastic (think mylar helium balloons that you buy for special occasions). It is mixed with a glue and put into a bottle. You see the glitter in the bottle and immediately when you apply it. You cannot dry it with a heat tool, because the mylar starts to melt (and smoke) and you get a mess. It takes a while to dry and you have to be careful with your project until it is fully dry.

Now there is Distress Stickles. These are made with mica glitter. Several different "sizes" of mica. Again, in a glue. Where else do we see mica? Products like Twinkling H2Os. Glimmer Mist and Perfect Pearls. We all know that when it is applied wet, you really don't notice the shine, but when it dries, it really starts to pop. The same thing applies to Distress Stickles. In the bottle, it is in the wet form, and you cannot really see the shine - same thing when you apply it before it dries. However, once it dries, you see the mice "do it's thing." The other nice thing about Distress Stickles is that you CAN dry it with a heat tool, because the mica does not melt like mylar.

So, the next time you're in Stamped Designs, pick up a bottle (or more) and give it a try. I think you will be impressed with the effect once you see it. I'll be putting out some samples I recently made so you can see it in action!

Thanks for stopping by!

Jeannette

Reindeer Tag - Tim Holtz Style

I took a class this afternoon with Tim Holtz and this is one of the tags we made. This is using some of his dies from Sissix, cut out of grungeboard. The reindeer has Walnut Stain Distress ink applied to it, then we took a gold Perfect Pearls and applied it over the distress ink. Because the ink stays wet, the powder does adhere to it. I spritzed it quickly with a mini mister to ensure it would adhere well. The tag background is stamped and then, we used the new Pumice Stone distress ink and did the "wrinkle free distress" technique on the remainder of the tag. The whole thing was lightly spritzed with the new Perfect Pearls misters in pearl color to add a little shimmer. Add a few metal embellishments - and you're done!

Jeannette

Large flower stamps...

Now back to our regular programming...

We all own a lot of large stamps - and most of us have a hefty collection of floral images. There is always the standard "stamp and color" technique with large stamps, but sometimes you just want it to be different. One option is to create a tile effect by cutting the image apart and then layering it to a coordinating color, then mounting to a card so it has the appearance of tiles. That is what I did with this image. Before I cut it apart, I took a lined background image from StacyStamps and inked it with Ranger's Antique Linen Distress ink and stamped it over the image to create an aged look. This is a great stamp - one that I like to use a lot. Breaks up the bright white background a bit.

We all need a little cat help...

As you can see, one of my cats, Dora, was helping me sort and price the new Magnolia Cozy Autumn stamps this morning. I am not exactly certain HOW she is helping, but she seems to think she is performing a vital role in the process. The new stamps are in the store and ready for you! Doras are extra!

A Scary Group!

If this group of Halloween doesn't scare you, nothing will! Another great design from Penny Black. The critters are colored with Staedtler watercolor pencils and a Dove Blender Pen. The black spiderweb along the bottom is a large ribbon punch from Martha Stewart Crafts. The sentiment was punched out in a circle and a second layer added for some additional pop. It is mounted with foam tape. Makes for a cute Halloween card!

Jeannette

Shades of Beige...

On this card I used shades of beige and several layers of Spellbinders dies. The cut-out flower is a Flourishes stamp from their Poppy stamp set, attached with foam tape. I colored it with several beige Copic markers. The happy birthday sentiment is from Serendipity rubber stamps. The designer paper is also beige shades, layered to black cardstock - the bottom edge is cut with an EK Success edger punch. The dotted organdy ribbon is from May Arts - I used a brown around the card and tied a piece of black into the knot to add some dimension. The last touches is a little distressing with Ranger Distress ink in Brushed Corduroy and some black pearls from Queen and Company.

Have a great stamping day!

Jeannette

Mimi and Friend

This is another image from the Penny Black "Mimi" line. These are cute images that are great for girlfriends and little girls. Certainly not guy material, but they are cute. Some folks that are freaked out with the mouthless Magnolia images like these because they have mouths. This is a pretty basic card - stamped and colored with Staedtler watercolor pencils and a blender pen. A band of Bazzill brown cardstock - cut with an EK border punch and a ribbon added. The striped DP has glitter on the brown stripes and I honestly cannot remember whose paper is is. The white ribbon is double-faced satin by Midori.

Spooky Halloween - Penny Black Style!

This is one of the new cute images from Penny Black for Halloween 2010. I just love the critters that this artist creates! The cats, hedgehogs and mice are the cutest in the business. To make this card, I cut 1-inch squares of purple and orange Bazzill cardstock. On the purple squares, I stamped a funky Penny Black image with Dusty Concord Distress ink from Ranger. These got layered in a checkerboard pattern on a piece of white cardstock. That piece was then attached to a green card. The cat was colored with Staedtler watercolor pencils and a Dove blender pen and cut out. The little bat and words are from a clear Penny Black Halloween set. The cat and bat are attached with foam tape. If you don't mind cutting out - it's a snap!

Thanks for stopping by!
Jeannette

Pretty Flowers...

These pansies are another great image by Flourishes, stamped on a Spellbinders oval and colored with Copic markers. These are layered to another Spellbinders labels die cut out of a BoBunny Double Dot cardstock. The DP underneath is also a BoBunny paper. Add a strip of the double dot cardstock and an ivory strip punched with an EK Success border punch designed by Brenda Walton. The butterflies are a Martha Stewart Crafts punch that were distressed with some Ranger Brushed Corduroy Distress Ink that have a couple purple pearls added for accent. The green ribbon is double-face satin by Midori.

Cherry Blossoms

The Cherry Blossoms set is another great selection of stamps from Flourishes. This card is made from one of the smaller images in the set - stamped multiple times along the left edge of the cardstock. I colored these with Prismacolor pencils. The pink bow is ribbon from May Arts and I overtied a second bow with a metallic twine also from May Arts. I LOVE the metallic twine. It comes in gold, silver and a white iridescent. The right edge of the natural cardstock is punched with an EK Success border punch and layered to a light green Bazzill cardstock, then to a mauve basecard with a metallic paper from Penny Black.

I hope you're having a great Labor Day weekend! The weather here in the northeast is gorgeous!

Jeannette

Mimi with Cupcake!

This is one of the cute little Mimi images from Penny Black! Great designs and who doesn't love a cupcake? The image is stamped on a Spellbinders heart die cut-out, then layered to a light pink scalloped heart (also from Spellbinders). The card is embossed with a 5x7" Cuttlebug embossing die. I colored Mimi with Staedtler watercolor pencils and a Dove Blender. The words are by Amuse.

Thanks for stopping by!

Jeannette

Golfing Riley...

I made this card for a golfing friend who is celebrating a birthday next week. The striped/glittered paper is from The Robin's Nest and I just LOVE this paper! The brown glitter pattern is exquisite. Riley is colored with Staedtler watercolor pencils and a blender pen. The circle is a Spellbinders die and the 2 colored circles underneath are cut out with the Spellbinders Inverted Scalloped circles dies. The paper is cut with a Martha Stewart border punch. To make the little glitter buttons, I took some leftover chipboard holes from something I was cutting out with the AccuCut machine and applied glue and some glitter to the top side. Just let it dry and then you have the perfect little embellishment.

We're gearing up for Hurricane Earl here in the Northeast and Friday is not likely going to be a good golfing day! However, you can always stamp!

Thanks for stopping by!

Jeannette

Yellow Roses...

These roses are from one of the calendar florals sets from Flourishes. Mixed with teal paper and cardstock, it makes a nice all-purpose card. The words are by Impression Obsession and the flowers are colored with Prismacolor pencils. There are 2 layers of Spellbinders dies - one in black and the other in natural white. I applied Wild Honey Distress ink by Ranger around the edge of the scalloped oval. Wild Honey is quickly becoming one of my favorite colors! The teal ribbon is a double-face satin by Midori.