The Card Concept #61 & Caring Hearts Card Drive

Every time I sit at my desk to work this month, I try to make four more cards just for the Caring Hearts Card Drive which distributed more than 22,000 Holiday Cards last year to the elderly who live in nursing homes.  So with the idea of making a few rather than just one, I used the same design that I showed on Instagram the other day, just with slightly different colors. This design is so fast that really, I should make about 10 each time!  (In the end, I made 12 today.) However, I don't have much in the way of printed paper, so it takes a while to choose that. Otherwise, it's super easy to make these cards.  I was having a problem the other day with an ink pad when I was working on these cards but my replacement pad was in yesterday's mail so I could go ahead and make a few more of these.  You can see in the next Photo that my leaves are a different color (Ocean Tides) than the ones I made today, but I decided not to make anymore until my replacement ink pad came.

I did use the MISTI to stamp the sentiment since it is two different fonts and on two different stamps and I needed to be able to stamp it again if my first stamping was not as clean as it should have been. I started with panels of 5.5 x 4.25 inch Stamper's Select White Cardstock and stamped my greeting from the Simon Says Stamp's Believe in the Season Stamp Set. I sprinkled Ranger Gold Tinsel Embossing Powder over the top and heat set it. I stamp, sprinkle, stamp, sprinkle, & heat set 2 panels at a time. Lots of people do more than this but I found if I have too many at once, I tend to mess up the embossing powder before it gets heat set. Some folks stamp 10 at a time for instance but I don't get impressions as good when I do it that way as I think the ink dries too much before getting sprinkled.  I guess I am kind of a slow stamper. Whatever happens, you should always do what works for you personally.  Other people's experiences can be your guideline, but do it how you like.

I wanted to add a few thoughts about MISTI here as food for thought.  I have the MISTI and also the Mini MISTI.  There is also available a Large Misti which will stamp a 12 x 12 sheet of paper. At the time when I got mine, the regular sized MISTI was the only size available. Just after CHA this year, the other two sizes were released.  Heidi Crowl had a "Steals & Deals" flash sale at Simon Says Stamp sometime in the past 6 month and had the Mini MISTI on there for $29.00 so I snatched it up!  I love the small size since I usually work on a panel of cardstock but you need the larger, 8.5 x 11 inch size if  if you want to stamp directly onto a card base.  Also, the Mini MISTI takes up a lot less real estate on my desk.

Image from my Instagram Account on November 8

On the first 4 cards from today, I used the Holly Leaves and Berries from Papertrey Ink's Enclosed: Bell Stamp Set to stamp the images by stamping first in Versamark Ink and then adding my color choices for each thing - in this case Pine Feather and Pure Poppy.  I want to make sure you understand what I did here so I'm going to explain it a bit further.  I stamped first on the Versamark Ink Pad and then without cleaning that off, stamped again in the colored ink. So there is a double layer of ink so to speak is what I stamped onto my paper.  I sprinkled each of them with WOW! Neutral Ultra Shimmer Embossing Powder which deepens the color and makes it look all sparkly.  

I wanted to do a comparison for how that worked as opposed to stamping just in the ink, without any Versamark added, then covering with embossing powder. So that I could keep it straight in my mind which was which, I used Simon Says Stamp Clear Embossing Powder for these next four cards.  I would stamp in ink only, sprinkle the embossing powder, heat set it, then while that was still warm, sprinkle the clear embossing powder again and heat set it and again a third time. These make the glossiest, smoothest berries and leaves.  The 2nd time helps, but it's that third time of sprinkling and heating that really makes them nice.  The look very much as if I put a coat of glossy accents on everything but I didn't have to wait for them to dry. Pine Feather is a very deep green ink and the clear embossing powder just intensifies this.  When I worked on this design a couple of days ago, I did those by sprinkling the berries with WOW! Primary Apple Red Embossing Powder, but honestly, the clear was so much easier to do and I could do it without having to change embossing powders mid stream.  These stamps are small in size and I have my container of Clear Embossing Powder sitting right there for an immediate sprinkle.  Since I planned from the beginning to heat emboss the stamping, I had moved over to that area of my studio where I keep those tools.  I wouldn't have had enough time to get the embossing powder onto the damp ink if I had stamped them at my desk and then moved them the heat embossing area. These inks are not pigment based so they don't stay wet very long. Time is of the essence and you can't dawdle on this step.  I used an acrylic block to stamp the leaves and berries.  I could have used MISTI since it was sitting there but it seemed easier to just stamp them normally.  And although I did this by hand, they are really close to being in exactly the same place on each panel - proof that practice really does help.

The patterned papers are from Wild Rose Studio's Bird & Berries Collection and Painted Poinsettia's Collection. I didn't mess any of these up when I was die cutting them with the Simon Says Stamp Stitched Rectangles Dies but I was worried I might because they are so thin.

This is the one time of year that I used pre-made note cards from Hobby Lobby but they are not the same size as usual being 4 x 5.5 inches.  Anytime I am making a large group of cards, I use these, to be consistent and because they are fast and ready to go.  I love the narrow margin around the outside of the die cut so if I trim 1/4 inch off of the longer side, then this is a perfect fit for this look.  I actually wish someone would make a die with the stitched edge and the slightest bit smaller than a standard A2 card base; like 5 3/8th's x 4 1/8th.  So far, no one does.  Everyone makes one that is a quarter of an inch smaller on both sides or the same size of 4.25 x 5.5 inches. I'm looking for the in between size.

On some of these cards, I did a bit of ink blending around the edges of the smaller rectangle (cut using the second largest Simon Says Stamp Stitched Rectangle) with Pale Peony or Spring Rain Ink and a Mini Ink Blending Tool. Since this is card stock and not watercolor paper, I used a back and forth scrubbing motion just on the edges which gives some added texture. All in all , this was a very easy card to make and to duplicate. I noticed that my friend, Yana, did a card with the same basic design the other day and all I can say is that "great minds think alike". She used the Simon Says Stamp Poinsettia Stamp Set for her "Holly" which is a genius idea. Yana always makes me take a step back and try to see my stamps in other ways but I'm not nearly as good at that as she is.

This last card is the one I'll be entering into The Card Concept Challenge #61 in the Clean & Layered Style. The color Pink was my total inspiration for this challenge although I did more cards in both the pink and the blue.  If you'd like to contribute cards to this great card drive, you can find all the details here at Jennifer McGuire's Blog or you can contact the Activities Director at a local nursing home to see if there is a need in your area.  I bet there is!   

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.

Simon Says "Flora & Fauna"

This week over on the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog the theme is one of my favorites, "Flora & Fauna".  I wanted to create a card with a lot of textural interest as well as visual interest for my sweet Mother-In-Law.  With all the shimmer and bling that is on this card, I know she will enjoy looking at it. She doesn't read the writing anymore so what's on the outside is far more important than what is on the inside.  I try to make it as fun as possible.

Recently, I watched a video that my scrappy friend, Yana Smakula (pronounced Sma-coo-la not Smack-u-la), had done where she showed a product that was new to me called Stampendous Boss Gloss Embossing Ink. Just the name is fun! If you ask my husband, he would tell you that I am always bossy, so this ink and I were made for each other. *Ü* If you haven't ever checked out Yana's Blog, you should.  Even though English is her 3rd language and not her 1st or even her 2nd, her videos are remarkably well done and her English is exceptionally good as well. You can click the link I provided here but I always have her linked as one of the blogs I follow in the sidebar on the right hand side of my blog.  Also, be sure to check out her YouTube Channel as she has a significant number of video tutorials there also.

So anyway, the Boss Gloss comes in a 2 oz. bottle that has a little sponge dauber top and can work on die cuts that have already been cut, stenciled, or colored somehow. You can also use it to apply embossing ink directly to your stamps for embossing or even to apply embossing ink to a die cut word.  This is going to be a handy tool in my studio and I like having a choice.  The bottle will fit in places that the ink pad will not.  I'm sure there will be other ways to use it that I haven't even thought of yet.

To begin, I stamped one of the Stampendous Pen Pattern Butterflies on a piece of Canson Bristol Watercolor Paper using Versamark and heat embossed it with Simon Says Stamp Antique Gold Embossing Powder.  I've been using this paper since I took a Watercolor for Cardmakers Class last August.  For the type of watercolor I do, it is my absolute "go to" paper.  I just got a pad of this paper in what Canson calls "Bright White", but it is truly no whiter than the Regular Canson Bristol Watercolor Paper.  It has the same smooth surface and is nearly identical in weight, but I haven't actually used any of it yet. I'll have to report back when I actually try some of it.

I colored the butterfly using Distress Markers in Worn Lipstick, Abandoned Coral, Wilted Violet and Seedless Preserves with Dark Grey Zig Clean Color Real Brush Marker for the the body.  I used the Coordinating Dies to cut out the butterfly.  I cut 2 of the Poppy Stamps Massa Leaf Background Dies from Vellum as well as a Memory Box Blushing Flower Die in Vellum. For the Blushing Flower Die cut, I colored the flowers using Worn Lipstick and the leaves in Mowed Lawn on the front side since I was planning to heat emboss. Next I used Versamark and Stampendous Embossing Ink all over all the pieces and then put a layer of WOW! Neutral Ultra Shimmer Embossing Powder on everything and heat set it. This powder looks the same as the Judikins Iridescent Sparkle Embossing Powder.  I have a box lid that is very shallow to set these things into while I heat emboss them so they aren't blowing all over my room.   There is so much sparkling goodness on these elements now.  I did my best to capture it in a photograph, but there is no way for the camera to capture all that the human eye and mind can see in a single glance.

I cut the Smile Circle Die in gold foil cardstock and a white background circle to go behind it which I also covered with embossing ink, embossing powder and then heat set. I can hardly wait until I begin making Christmas Cards to use this Embossing Ink and Powder for shimmer and sparkle on the snow or on any ornaments I might make.

I cut a Noted: Scalloped A2 card base from Papertrey Ink Berry Sorbet Cardstock, and I used a Simon Says Stamp Stitched Rectangle in the largest size to cut a white insert for the inside of the card.  I misted the card front with Tsukineko Sheer Sparkle Shimmer Spritz and let it dry for a few minutes.  Then I began assembling everything using Ranger Multi Medium Matte except for the butterfly which I adhered using Scor-Tape down the center of the body.  By attaching it this way, I can make it seem as if the butterfly might take flight at any moment.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. I hope you enjoyed this card and that you will stop by Yana's blog and check it out as well.  She makes the loveliest things. I'll be back soon with another project.

CAS On Sunday #84 - Sparkle

I found a new challenge to participate in this week so I thought I'd give it a shot. It is called CAS (Clean & Simple) on Sunday.  To be considered CAS, it must be minimal layers, one focal image, and fast and easy to recreate.  While I enjoy the challenge of more technique driven cards, at other times I just want something that is fast and easily mailable.  I actually make a lot of cards that would fit into this category although not all of them.  Today's card definitely fits into this category.  The style for this challenge is CAS with Sparkle.  Y'all know how I love my sparkle.

I started by stamping the largest image from the SU! Flowering Flourishes Stamp Set with Versamark onto a piece of Creative Memories Sea Glass Card Stock.  I don't know if that set is a current product or not.  Once I had it stamped, I heat set it with WOW! Metallic Platinum Sparkle Embossing Powder.  That completed my main focal image. I used the "You've been on my mind" greeting from the Papertrey Ink Friendly Flowers Stamp Set and die cut the butterfly from some Papertrey Ink #44 Vellum.  The butterfly is from Impression Obsession.

I spritzed the Sea Glass panel and the butterfly with Tsukineko Sparkle Sheer Shimmer Spritz and set it aside to dry for a few minutes.  Once it was dry, I cut the panel with the largest Simon Says Stamp Stitched Rectangle  After that I attached the Sea Glass Panel to a top folding A2 Card Base made from Stamper's Select White Cardstock using my ATG.  The butterfly was attached using Ranger Multi Medium Matte.  Three small pearls were attached to the three little flowers on the stamped image and this card was complete.  It's a super fast card that still looks great!  You can't really see the sparkle of the paper in the photograph, but it is there. The sparkle of the embossing powder also helps to bring that out.  

I hope you enjoyed today's card and that you'll come back soon.  There will be lots more projects this week.  I'll also be entering this into the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge for their Anything Goes theme. Have a great rest of the Memorial Day weekend! 

Tulip Magnolias

I've been working on Mother's Day cards since last week and I want to make a few more for the Moms of my grandkids. I haven't really decided on a design at this point in time so I'm kind of winging it.  I'm using a technique that I'm already comfortable with for my girls' cards -- watercolor with heat embossing.

I used a couple of different stamp sets from Altenew to get the look for today's cards which was inspired by this image from the Inspired by All the Little Things Challenge Blog for last week.  Although I didn't have time to participate in that Challenge, I kept the image because it inspired me.

My daughter, Yuovonne, has a Tulip Magnolia at her house and I love it when I get to see it blooming.  The delicate pink blooms are just beautiful. I have a traditional Magnolia Tree in my yard that we put in a few years ago, but the blooms are totally different in shape and color and y'all know how I love my pink and purple.

Last year it rained so much in the spring that the blooms got pelted off my tree within hours of blooming and I never got to enjoy them. This was a fairly mature tree when we put it in at approximately 18 feet tall, but the first winter after that it got hammered by an ice storm which broke several of the branches off.  It seems to have recovered from that and this will be its 3rd spring with us.

Yuovonne is the mother of all my grand girls; Kaylan, Kylie, Cameron, Lauren and Emily as well as Grant and Christopher while Shelli is mom to Lance and Tracen.  I don't really have a sentiment specific to give a card to your daughter on Mother's Day so I'm used the SUPERMOM sentiment from the Magnolias for Her Stamp Set.  It used to have an exclamation point on the end, but it always just looked like an extra line so I preformed "Stamp Surgery" on it the last time I used it. The two cards I made today are for them.  I still have one more to make and mail, but I really want to get these out today if possible.  I don't think I'm in any danger of my girls seeing them before they receive them in the mail.  They don't read my blog and one of them doesn't use social media at all.

On a piece of watercolor paper, I stamped the Tulip Magnolias from the Altenew Magnolias for Her with Versamark and heat embossed them using WOW! Copper Pearl Embossing Powder.  I watercolored them using Papertrey Ink's Lavender Moon Ink smooshed onto an acrylic block and picked it up using a water brush. There are so many different ways to watercolor and I use several of them. Do whatever is comfortable and achievable for you.

I also stamped the branch from the Altenew Winter Cardinal Set with Versamark and heat embossed it using the same Copper Embossing Powder. The branch is not an outline images so I stamped it on a different piece of Watercolor Paper and then did some ink blending with a bit of Tumbled Glass Distress Ink to resemble a sky background. I used a Ranger Mini Ink Blending Tool for that. Watercolor Paper works really nicely for ink blending.  The magnolias were cut out with the Magnolias for Her Coordinating Dies and adhered to the panel using Tombow Mono Adhesive.

I also used a sheet from the Lawn Fawn Perfectly Plaid 6 x 6 Collection for the mat on my cards.  I really struggle to use any kind of printed paper.  The butterfly is from the Papertrey Ink Color Pop Butterflies Kit. Of course, everything has a coat of Wink of Stella on it which you can't see in the photo, but I assure you it is there. *Ü*

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog today. I'll be entering this card over on the "Anything Goes" Challenge at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog.  I hope to have a few more projects ready for you before the end of the week especially since I have more daughter to make a card for.