The Beauty of Distress Oxide Inks

Hello everyone!  Today I got to sit down with a new tool and play for the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and the Simon Says Stamp Flickr Challenge #66. For this challenge, we are supposed to "color" something.  I hope ink blending counts as a type of coloring.  I actually made 4 cards today; two with dye inks and two with the new Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Inks.  It wasn't that I was planning to compare them, but when they came in today's mail, I could not resist stamping a couple more backgrounds to play with.

The original 2 cards were white heat embossing on Canson Bristol Watercolor Paper which is what I use 95% of the time for my card fronts. They take ink much better than cardstock when you want to do ink blending and I use a lot of shimmer mists in my cards so this paper works better and helps to achieve that seamless transition of color.  Once I learned to ink blend, it's a technique that I use often.  I almost had those cards finished when the mail arrived and I set them aside.

I stamped two panels using the Simon Says Stamp Emma Background in the original MISTI on the watercolor panels using Versamark and heat embossed them with Simon Says Stamp Antique Gold Embossing Powder.  I simply can't help it - I love how rich and elegant the gold embossing looks. I do use other colors from time to time, but I use embossing on almost every card I make and I'm never as satisfied with any other embossing powders as I am with gold. The Simon Says Stamp Antique Gold is my favorite because it's a bit warmer and reminds me of WOW!'s Gold Rich Pale.  I used a very pretty sapphire blue the other day and I did like how that looked, but it would have looked equally as good in gold. For me the struggle is how to make cards without gold and that struggle is real my friends.  *Ü* I don't use shimmer mist on masculine cards, but it's hard to restrain myself when I think of how much more awesome it would be with shimmer.

I grabbed a couple of new foam pads for my Mini Round Ink Blending Tools and opened the Broken China and Cracked Pistachio Distress Oxide Inks and started blending the Broken China in the center of the panel. Since I watched Jennifer McGuire's Video from last week, I knew that I could start in the middle and be able to blend it out.  If you've tried this, you know it can be quite tricky with Dye Inks.  I blended the Broken China Distress Oxide all in the center of the panel and then went around the the rest of the panel with the Cracked Pistachio.  One of the first things I noticed was that while initially I thought I wasn't getting very good coverage, it only took seconds for it to saturate the paper.  Then once you hit it with the shimmer mist (or water), it oxidizes and becomes so creamy and smooth. It is very beautiful. For both of these cards I used Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist in Iridescent Gold. It's my favorite, but it takes some work to find it. Happily, I saw it at CHA in the 7 Gypsies Booth and I got a business card so that I can order direct from their site.  Canvas Corp Brands owns Tattered Angel so you can go directly to their website to order.  They have about 50 colors, but I primarily use just Iridescent Gold.  I have some copper, pearl, silver and a couple of others but I had been on my very last bottle of Iridescent Gold when I left for CHA in January, so I was super happy to see it and no that I could still get it.

I grabbed my other embossed panel with Peeled Paint and Worn Lipstick Distress Oxide Inks and did ink blending in the same way, first with Worn Lipstick in the center and Peeled Paint around that. These were so easy and took so much less time (literally minutes) to get a beautiful, vibrant ink blended background. I'm telling you - I am in love!  Because of the busy the background is, I wanted to keep the rest of the card simple.

I cut the Concord & 9th Floral and Flutter Dies from gold cardstock and heat embossed the sentiment from Papertrey Ink's Botanical Blocks Stamp Set onto the same watercolor paper. Then I die cut both of the backgrounds panels using a Simon Says Stamp Stitched Rectangle Die in the largest size.  One is mounted onto a card base made from Papertrey Ink Ripe Avocado Cardstock and the other card base was made from Papertrey Ink Vintage Jadeite Cardstock. Papertrey Ink's Perfect Match Cardstock is super smooth and heavyweight at #110. It is also the most reasonably priced cardstock out there costing just $5.00 for 25 sheets of colored cardstock.

Thank you so much for stopping by today.  Be sure to stop over at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and the Simon Says Stamp Flickr Challenge to see all the great projects and the Simon Says Stamp Store to order supplies! Happy Friday, everyone!

A Thrill of Hope

I have a card today for the AAA Card Challenge #79 with a theme of Christmas. For those of you who may not know it, CAS means Clean & Simple.  All of the AAA Card Challenges are for CAS cards.  I'll also be linking this up over at the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with their theme of  "Anything Goes".

Yesterday I was finishing up the last of my Christmas Cards (I think), I still had quite a pile of "parts & pieces" left so I pulled a few things from the pile and made a couple more cards.  This particular card is for the pastor and his family who live across the street from us.

I had previously done a bit of soft ink blending on the tags from the WPLUS9 Love Showers Die Set.  Those were cut out of Canson 140# Watercolor Paper which takes ink blending very well. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink's A Thrill of Hope Stamp Set and was stamped with Versamark and heat embossed with Ranger Gold Tinsel Embossing Powder. After that the tag was spritzed with Tsukineko Sheer Sparkle Shimmer Spritz.

For the mat, I did a lot of gold splatter using Sargent Art Gold Watercolor on Scarlet Jewel Cardstock and set it aside to dry while I figured out the rest of my design. This design is so clean and simple that it really needed a touch of something.  Going back to my pile of parts and pieces, I grabbed some of the Spellbinders Jolly Holly leaves, (which had also been cut out from splattered paper) and added them to my card.  A few Satin Red Sequins made up the berries on the holly. I die cut the mat using the largest Simon Says Stamp Stitched Rectangle Die and assembled the card using ATG with Ranger Multi Medium Matte for the sequins and holly.

I really like how this turned out.  Although you can't see the ink blending very well in this photo, it looks beautiful in real life.  I wanted the card to be about the sentiment more than the decor.  It is the reason for the season after all.  This was quick and simple to do but still makes an impact.

Thank you so much for stopping by today.  I have lots of projects on my desk right now so I hope you'll stop by again soon.  I have a new project 3 - 5 times each week. 

Simon Flickr Challenge & Concord & 9th Challenge

I've been making so many Christmas cards that it's left me longing to watercolor so when I saw that the Simon Says Stamp Flickr Challenge was for coloring, in any method, so I used the new Concord & 9th Stamp Set  called  Hello, Lovely which means I am also entering this into the Concord & 9th Challenge. This is a big, beautiful floral arrangement that you can color in your choice of mediums.  All the arranging is done for you. The first card I made with this stamp I used Spring colors but for the second one, I wanted to do something in more Christmas-y colors.

I started with a panel of Canson Bristol Watercolor Paper.  After treating it with my powder tool, I stamped it in Versamark and heat set it using Simon Says Stamp Antique Gold Embossing Powder--still my favorite gold!

I used a combination of Distress Markers (Festive Berries) and Zig Clean Color Real Brush Markers in Persian Blue, Olive, & Deep Green with a water brush. The entire panel was spritzed with shimmer mist once the watercolor had dried. 

I stamped the sentiment from the Sugar Pea Designs Kindness Matters Stamp Set onto the same watercolor paper and used the same embossing powder.  

Next I die cut the sentiment and the watercolored panel using dies from the Simon Says Stamp Stitched Rectangle Die Set then assembled my card onto a top folding card base made from Bazzill Whirlypop Cardstock using my ATG gun.  This was a super simple card for these challenges.  It took a little bit of time to watercolor, but I really enjoy doing that.  

So that's it for a quick post this morning.  I'm hoping to take the rest of the day off!  Thank you so much for stopping by today!  

Simon Says Stamp Flickr Challenge #58

I have another super quick post today for the Simon Says Stamp Flickr Challenge #58.  Just in case you are wondering, the Flickr Group is actually spelled F-L-I-C-K-R, without the "E" in there. I do occasionally make typos, but this isn't one of those times. *Ü*

This is so similar to other cards I've done in the last few weeks so I'm just going to give you a run down of the products and colors I used here:

Card Base: Simon Says Stamp Audrey Blue Cardstock
Die Cut Word: Simon Says Stamp Believe Dies, Teal Mirror Card Stock
Ornaments: Hero Arts Ornaments Stamp 'N Cut Coordinating Set, Amethyst Allure Reinker, Simon Says Stamp Antique Gold Embossing Powder
Branch:  Sunny Studios Holiday Style Stamp Set, WOW! Neutral Ultra Shimmer Embossing Powder, Papertrey Ink Ocean Tides Ink
Background Ink Blending: Simon Says Stamp Audrey Blue Ink
Canson Bristol Watercolor Paper for the base panel

I ink blended the background color on first and then stamped the branch twice for a wider bough and heat set with the Neutral Ultra Shimmer Embossing Powder. Some of the other ornament dies I have cut closer to the edge of the outline and I definitely like that better, but I just love the shape of these ornaments and the optical illusion of the design.

We are enjoying still very warm temperatures during the daytime hours here.  We went for a drive this morning to see some fall color, but we don't have much color yet here. Enjoy your weekend! Thank you so much for stopping by and taking time to comment.

Simon Says Stamp Flickr Challenge #57

Each year right after Halloween, the grocery stores and nurseries start putting out their Poinsettias.  While I love the traditional red ones, it's the lovely pink ones that make me happy and speak to my heart with their beauty.

I watercolored this poinsettia from the Papertrey Ink Botanical Blocks IV using Worn Lipstick and Mowed Lawn Distress Markers with a water brush.  I used Sugar Pea Designs Zig-Zag Stitched Rectangle Dies, Hibiscus Burst Cardstock, Canson Bristol Watercolor Paper, Versamark, Simon Says Stamp Antique Gold Embossing Powder, Gold Foiled Cardstock, and of course the Simon Says Stamp Exclusive "believe" die.  I LOVE LOVE LOVE this die!  I'll be happy when the Simon Says Stamp Believe Stamp Set arrives but I had to wait to order until it was back in stock and it hasn't shipped yet.

Since the sentiment is "believe", I had to dig through some stuff and find some Jingle Bells.  They aren't silver bells like in the Polar Express Movie, but since I used gold accents on my card I saved the silver ones for another time. *Ü*

This card was created for the Simon Says Stamp Flickr Challenge #57 which is still "Anything Goes".  You can still play today or until 9:00 a.m. EST tomorrow!  Have a great day everyone!

Color Throwdown #406

Hello everyone!  Today I created a card for the Color Throwdown Challenge #406 featuring Green, Orange and Light Pink with White. Actually, I created two cards while I had the supplies handy.

When I saw this card created by Wanda Guess, I loved it and looked around for a couple of minutes to see what I had that would be suitable for something in a similar color scheme. That meant I had to look at my patterned papers - something I don't have much of because I don't use them much. The patterned paper I used is from SEI and I got this pad of 6 x 6 papers at last year's scrapbook convention in Tulsa. This is one of those designs. Wanda used a Chartreuse cardstock for her card base and I don't have anything that color so I used some SU! cardstock in Wild Wasabi for my card base.  Wanda got her gingham paper from Amuse Studio but they no longer have it because I checked.  I know -- it's super cute!

When I started my project this morning, I wanted to compare 2 different brands of white embossing powders that I have so I heat embossed each image with one of the 2 so I could compare them.  One of the ones I have was "inherited" from a girlfriend but the WOW! Opaque Bright White Super Fine Embossing Powder was the hands down winner.  It melted really quickly and was super smooth.  I use a lot more clear embossing powder than I do of white so that it matches the color of my paper or cardstock perfectly but I wanted to use the white today because I know that is what Wanda used here.  The floral branch I used is from Altenew's Best Mom Stamp Set and has a coordinating die.  I love those Concord & 9th Stamp sets that Wanda used but I don't have either of them.  Wanda has great light in her studio.  The light in my studio is blocked by the three enormous pergolas on the west side of our house so I am using artificial lighting in my studio.  I can see out the windows just fine, but I don't ever have good light for photographs.

To color the blooms, I used Ripe Persimmon Distress Marker for one and Ripe Persimmon Distress Ink with just a hint of Zig Clean Color Real Brush Marker in Sugared Almond Pink.  You can't really see the pink in the photos so you'll just have to trust me that it's there.  I love Ripe Persimmon because it is orange with a touch of pink in it but it also has enough yellow in it to be a warm color.  It brings back so many sweet memories of spending the night with my great-grandmother when I was a really little girl.  She had a Persimmon tree in her yard.

Anyhow, sometimes when you add water to the mix you can get some golden edges but that happens more with the marker than with the ink from the pad.  I did one of each today. Smooshing the ink onto an acrylic block gave a higher concentration of color to my wash and not nearly as much variegation   The orange "hello" die cut is from Mama Elephant and I did a watercolor wash using the the ink from the Distress Ink Pad onto watercolor paper before die cutting it. The other is cut from plain watercolor paper.  I use Canson Bristol Watercolor Paper the most and one of the things I love about it is that it is a soft white rather than being cream colored. Since I'm not actually "painting" in a traditional sense, it works great for me.  I rarely use cream colored cardstock although I have a project coming up that might.

There's no special techniques here, just some ordinary coloring of the floral branch with some cute patterned papers that were die cut with coordinating dies and Simon Says Stamp Stitched Rectangles Dies.  I actually didn't use quite enough water with my inks to get a true watercolor feel, but these cards still turned out pretty just the same.  It's not my typical look but it was good to do something different.

Thank you so much for stopping by today. Be sure to check out Wanda's bog.  I linked it in the 1st sentence of the 2nd paragraph.

Color Throwdown #398

Hello everyone!  Last week I won The Color Throwdown Challenge #396 which means that this week, I get to be the guest designer for The Color Throwdown #398.  Using lots of bright color is always somewhat of a challenge for me so when I saw the challenge graphic, I knew I had to really get into gear and use some color! This image has some cool refreshment on a hot summer day and I wanted to be equal to that challenge. Doesn't it look just divine?

Last weekend we had picked up a yellow watermelon at our local Sprouts and my husband had cut it up last Friday night and put it in the fridge.  When I went to get some a little while ago, I found that it was pretty much slush, so I continued that trend by tossing it in my blender with some ice and a bit of Vanilla Rum.  This was a very small (personal sized) melon so there wasn't much there once it went into the blender since watermelons are 92% water. It was the perfect icy refreshment for a hot summer day.  Our heat index is only 95° today! It's been at 115° for the last few days.  Let's just say I'm glad I work inside. *Ü*

For my challenge card this week, I started with some Canson Bristol Watercolor Paper and the Papertrey Ink Painted Petals Stamp Set.  I had only used a sentiment from this set previously but I really wanted to give it a good test run for this card so I also pulled out my MISTI. One of the things I really like about using the MISTI is the ability to double stamp everything to get a really vibrant concentration of color.  This was just the thing I was looking for to create this card.  The colors in the inspiration image are soooo vibrant and I wanted to create a card equal to that.

The Painted Petals Stamp Set has 4 different flowers with between 4 and 5 layers for each one.  It's a way to use layered similar colors on an image.  The color interpretations for the challenge are Red Raspberry, Hot Pink, Lime Green and Yellow but I also threw some coral into the mix. You don't have to use the exact colors, just something in that vicinity.  My flowers are a combination of  Hibiscus Burst, Berry Sorbet, Pure Poppy, Scarlet Jewel, Raspberry Fizz, Vintage Jadeite with some Gold Embossing tossed in there for the "yellow" in the flowers.  I used SU!'s So Saffron Cardstock for the background panel.  By double stamping each of the colored layers, I was able to achieve this very vibrant color and by using the MISTI, I didn't goof them up when I was doing that.  When you use watercolor paper and you double stamp your images, that paper will stay damp longer than usual so don't forget to let the images dry all the way before you add that final layer of heat embossing to the blooms.  I almost forgot!  Once that part was done, I die cut everything using the coordinating Painted Petals Dies.

I made a top folding 5.5 x 4.25 inch card base from Stamper's Select White.  This is my absolute favorite, go to card stock.  It is #110 and super smooth.  Using the WPLUS9 Design Studio Sunshine Layers Dies, I cut a scalloped, stitched rectangle background panel from SU!'s So Saffron cardstock then arranged my flowers.  The "Sending" stamp from Painted Petals was a little large for my card design so I used the Simon Says Stamp Exclusive Sending Die with the Sunshine & Hugs sentiment stamp from Painted Petals.

I'm thinking of sending this card to a crafty friend in Europe who is not yet into these dog days of summer that we are experiencing here in the Southwest.  Have you seen how hot it has been in Arizona this year already? Crazy weather for sure.  If it's 115 actual degrees, how hot is the heat index?  My nephew posted yesterday that it was 115 degrees in Cottonwood, AZ where he lives. That is too hot for me!

I hope you all have a great week and be sure to check out the current challenge over at The Color Throwdown.  They have a new challenge every Wednesday.

Color Q Challenge #344

As always, there is a new challenge up over at Color Q this week.  I really enjoy their challenges as they make me think outside the box and pair up colors I might not normally use. This was one such challenge. In fact, I interpreted Basic Gray as Silver for my card and heat embossed the greeting.

I have always loved the summer inspired colors of Bright Blue and Coral but with the twist of Coastal Cabana thrown in there, and a color palette of 5 colors, it was somewhat of a challenge for me although I managed. That's the whole point after all.  

I started with the Tag Sale: Quilted Die from Papertrey Ink cut from Stamper's Select White. I used my Stitched Square Stax from My Favorite Things in the 3rd and 4th largest sizes for the interior squares of Coastal Cabana and Brilliant Blue (actually Papertrey Ink Tropical Teal and Simon Says Stamp Blue Violet) with SU! Calypso Coral for my card base.  I also used a My Favorite Things Stitched Scallops die to create the scalloped edge. The ones I have are no longer available but are similar to this set from Lawn Fawn.  The Heart of Roses Die is a Simon Says Stamp exclusive die and the greeting is from the Simon Says Stamp Congratulations Stamp Set.

Whenever I create a card using a tag, I like to adhere that tag using temporary adhesive so the recipient can keep just that part if they like which is why I also run some ribbon through it.  You can simply rub the adhesive off the back of the tag with your thumb or finger. It makes for a smaller keepsake than a card and it's also small enough to put into a wedding album or scrapbook.  I made a card with a heart tag for my best friend for her birthday last year and she still carries it around with her.  That is her all time favorite card. I'm the sappy, sentimental sort, so I like the whole idea of being able to keep a piece of something with me. I was trying to think of something I could do that she could have with her all the time and this was my solution.  It's hard when your family and friends don't live near you. In this case, I'm the one who isn't nearby.  She and my daughter live much closer to each other.  

Be sure to stop over at Color Q to see all the entries from the Design Team and the projects that have been linked up by those of us participating in the challenge.