Wildflowers in a Jar

What says Spring more than wildflowers in a jar?   We had a few bluebonnets pop up in the field behind us and I was so happy because surely that meant spring was definitely here!

And then we had a cold front come through . . .wacky weather, I tell ya.

Anyway, onto the card:

This stamp is from Power Poppy's Go Wild stamp set..  It's a great set and I can't wait to color the other images.

Here are the markers I used:

Thanks for stopping by today!

About Those Hippos . . .

I had a bunch of those little guys all colored up; for the most part anyway.  I did leave the cupcake and present white so I could color them to coordinate with the card stock I chose when I finished up the card.

Anywho . . . I created a card for not one, but TWO challenges!

The first challenge is Sketch Challenge 382 from MFT and the other one is for the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge.

Here's the sketch:

The theme for the Simon Says Stamp challenge is "Anything Goes" and they are showcasing My Favorite Things products.

And here's my card:

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The Hippos are from the Happy Hippos stamp set from My Favorite Things.  The "happy" die is from Altenew and coordinates with the Half-Tone Happy stamp set (which is where "birthday" came from).

I cut the word "happy" once from navy card stock and again from white card stock.  When I adhered them together, I offset them just a bit to create a shadow.  I also used foam tape to give dimension to the die cut.

These are the markers I used:

Thanks for visiting today!

Happy Birthday Hippo

I recently got my hands on the super cute Happy Hippos stamp set from MFT and when I saw the inspiration board for this weeks Tic Tac Toe Challenge, I just knew I had to use them along with the Celebration Balloon Collage from PoppyStamps.

I chose the diagonal from the bottom left going up to the top right.


I wasn't planning on posting a "how-to," but there were a few steps involved to get those yellow balloons.  And, I apologize in advance for the really bad pictures; I had initially taken them so I would remember how I made the card.

So, the first thing I did was cut a piece of patterned cardstock to 4" x 5 1/4" and then placed the Celebration Balloon Collage die in the center and ran it through my Big Shot.

Then I cut it again from a piece of yellow cardstock.

I cut the balloons away from the frame.  As you can see, I wasn't too neat about it because I knew I was going to put a frame over it.

Now to get that black frame to fit around the Balloon Collage die, I did a little dance with my Cricut machine.  If you would like to know which image I used and the measurements, drop me a comment and I'll gladly share it with you.

And finally, I cut a piece of white card stock just a tad bit smaller than the patterned card stock to "fill in" the frame.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Poppystamps Framed Challenge

Ah yes. . . challenges . . . they most definitely give me a creative jump start.

For the month of April, the challenge over at Poppystamps is "Framed."  Here's what I came up with:

To create the frame, I used two nested circle dies.  I cut the confetti paper the same size as the larger of two circles for a perfect fit and used (a ridiculous amount of) foam tape to add dimension.

The bunny, balloon, cupcakes, and sentiment are from the Cupcake Party Stamp & Die set and the cupcakes are sitting on the Stitched Cake Plates craft die.

Here are the markers I used:

Thanks for visiting!

Moon Flower

I'll just jump right to it.  Here it is . . . the Moon Flower:

I was going to use the same layout I did with the Feather stamp, but the angle wasn't working for me. So, I sat and thought about it. . . and ended up with a full inked panel highlighted with all the other stamps that came in the set.

I inked the panel using Broken China, Peacock Feathers, and Pistachio Distress Oxide inks. Yes, I splattered water.  Then I randomly stamped all the individual flower stamps using White Pigment ink.

Here are the markers I used:

I finished it up by heat embossing the sentiment (Hampton Art).

Thanks for visiting and Enjoy Your Day!

Fabulous Feathers

Be still my heart.  When I saw these stamps, I was awestruck, but when I got them in my hands. . .oh my!  Again, the detail. . . the art. . . the quality of the stamps and die. Perfection.

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Thank you for your support!} 

I stamped the feathers in Tuxedo Black Memento Ink and then colored them with Copics.  Then I die cut them using the coordinating die.

I created the background by applying Seedless Preserves, Worn Lipstick and Wild Honey Distress Oxide inks using a Mini Ink Blending Tool.  I applied a light layer of ink and then stenciled over the top again with the same colors to add some depth.  Of course I splattered water, because I can't not do that.

The sentiment is from Hampton Arts.  I used Onyx Black Versafine Ink to get a really bold impression.

I finished it off with a few sequins and droplet embellishments.

So glad you stopped by today!

Front and Center

Because when an image is this detailed and so beautiful, that is exactly where it should be.  Front and center.

Ahhhh yes . . . another stamp and die set from Spellbinders.  This one is Sunflower Cool Vibes.

I know! I KNOW!  The art is just amazing!  I could stare at this stamp all day long.

For the background . . . I just wanted a little something, so I splattered Broken China and Twisted Citron Distress Oxide inks.

Here are the markers I used:

Thanks for stopping by!

Everything Can Be Fixed

It's true . . . it's very rare that a "mistake" cannot be fixed when it comes to card making or any paper crafting project really . . . consider it an opportunity for embellishment, or practicing fussy cutting.

Hence, my next two cards.

Perhaps you recall the other Orchid cards?  There is a spray of unopened buds that comes out from the flower in the top right.  Well, I attempted to do a partial die cut on this one and all I can say about that is, "Whoops."

So, I just grabbed those scissors o' mine and cut it out.  See? Problem solved.

I used Gray Flannel Memento ink to stamp the orchids and I ever.so.lightly sponged Tattered Rose Distress ink on the oval behind the orchids.

Here are the markers I used:

On this next card,  I had originally covered the image with a mask and sponged around it, with the intention of having the focal point of the card be a rectangle.  But one slip of the paper trimmer, and whoops! Time to grab the scissors . . . 

For the background die, I used the Majestic Labels 25 from Spellbinders.  I am in love with all the intricate details in this die set!  I also sponged a tad bit of Antique Linen Distress ink around the edges.

Here are the markers I used to color the orchids:

Thanks for visiting today!

Peony and Mandalas

Squeeeeeee!  My Spellbinders stamps have arrived!

First up . . . the Medium Peony Cool Vibes set.

When I sat down to color these images, I didn't have a plan. . . I just wanted to color!  So when it came time to actually put the cards together, I was stumped for a bit.

I knew that I didn't want to take away from the colored image, but I also knew that I wanted contrast. I also cut this one out by hand because once again, one of my markers decided to pool at the tip and drop a big old splotch of ink . . . twice.  I almost gave up, but decided that it was totally worth it to at least try and salvage it.  It worked!

The background that I stamped (to get the contrast that I was looking for) is from the Feather Stamp and Die set.  It worked out perfectly, don't you think?

Here are the colors I used . . . plus BG10 . . . because it got left out of the picture.

For the second card, I wanted a softer watercolor-y background.  The easiest way for me to achieve that is using Distress Oxide inks.  So, for this background I used Royal Sundance Felt Card Stock because is has a nice texture and holds up well with lots of water.

I smooshed Abandoned Coral and Wild Honey Distress Oxide inks directly on my non-stick craft sheet.  I sprayed a light coat of water on the card stock and the ink on my craft sheet.  Then I smooshed the cardstock into the ink a la Tim Holtz style.  I think (for the first time ever) I actually liked what I got the first time . . . it usually takes me 48 tries before I'm happy with a background.

 

Here are the colors I used:

The sentiment stamp is from Hero Arts.


Thanks for stopping by!

Beautiful Spring Weather . . .

. . . calls for a walk down by the river.  It's always nice to get out and get fresh air . . .and the pups enjoy it too.  It is something we all look forward to when the weather warms up.

Our little guy wasn't too sure about walking over the bridge, but he eventually got over it.

Clearly, he was distracted by a squirrel.  Either that, or he just didn't want to face the camera.

A short break in the shade before we make our way over to the food trucks for lunch.

 They both do okay in a car . . . for the most part.  Our big girl is quite used to it since we drove half way across the country when we moved here.  Our little guy, however, gets car sick.  Every.single.time.

We thought this time we were going to get lucky . . . we made all the way to our street and then. . . he puked.  Poor guy.

Morgan likes to stretch out in the backseat  . . . good thing Jacob is so little.

He was completely zonkered from the days adventure.

One of the days (when I get really good car sick medicine for him), we're going to go for a nice weekend getaway . . . 

Thanks for visiting!