Thinking of You

Sympathy cards - always hard! This is an Inkadinkado stamp that I heat embossed on watercolour paper and I watercoloured with Zig markers. The scalloped flourish is a Spellbinders die, as is the frame.

Christmas Card Challenge - Watercolour Background

Here I am with a Christmas card for Sylvia's monthly Christmas Card Challenge. This is for the month of April (I am playing catch up after a few months of poor health). Sylvia proposed a white snowflake and a watercolour background for a die cut. I used regular Distress Inks for the background with lots of water and some splatters. I tore the edges to fit a 5 X 7 inch card.

I love this snowflake die for its daintiness. I cut it from American Crafts cardstock and it cut like butter in my Cuttlebug and released with ease. 

I added two other die cut snowflakes because you can never have enough. The beautiful calligraphic quote is a rubber stamp from Quietfire Design that I stamped in blue Versafine ink and clear embossed.

I added shimmer with a Wink of Stella clear shimmer pen and a Spectrum Noir Sparkle Pen in Crystal Clear. I think, of the two, I prefer the latter. Close up below. I'm entering this in the Craftyhazelnuts Christmas Challenge, The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge, and the Merry Christmas Challenge. Check them out for great Christmas card inspiration!

Christmas in July

I tried my hand at some watercolour with this spectacular pine wreath stamp (Pine Burst) from Penny Black. I overdid it and was feeling sort of meh about it. Then I had the brainwave to layer vellum overtop to soften the look and ended up liking it much more.

After stitching the vellum down, I created a JOY stencil cut on my Silhouette Cameo and brushed clear Wink of Stella glitter over it (which I doubt you can see). I dotted the berries in the wreath with red gel pen on top of the vellum to highlight it a bit.

In the end it is a card saved, but I don't think I can keep hiding my watercolour efforts under vellum. Need to practice more and try to get better! This is for Sylvia Durocher's Christmas Card Challenge. The month of July requires a circle and the colour white. Check and Check! 

Penny Black Berry Kissed

I recently picked up a few new stamps from my local stamp store, Stampers!, which is sadly closing shop at the end of this year. They are Penny Black stamps and they have sort of a watercoloured feel to them already. I am watercolour challenged so I figured this would be a good way to try and get the look. This bunch of leaves and berries is called Berry Kissed.

Using my MISTI stamp positioner, I coloured the leaves, stems and berries using Distress markers. I just kept colouring and stamping until I got a look I liked. I clear embossed over all, then used an embossing pen to add glitter embossing powder to highlight parts here and there. I spattered the watercolour cardstock with Distress Shaded Lilac ink and used the same to colour the base of the card. The Penny Black sentiment (Festive Cheer) was stamped in VersaMagic Perfect Plumeria and clear embossed. I found a bit of plumeria coloured cardstock to layer underneath. 

I found a challenge on the internet to enter for Penny Black stamping - the Penny Black Saturday Challenge. The current call is for autumn colours and I think I achieved that.

I am also entering this in the current Christmas Card Challenge. Thanks for visiting. 

Bird Crazy Brain Teaser

Can you see what's wrong with this card? I created a lovely watercolour background using Distress Inks and cut the clouds and tree branch from Memory Box dies. The Bird Crazy stamp was coloured with Copic markers and I fussy cut him out. I used a Dymo label maker and outlined the sentiment with a black Sharpie.

Still can't see the obvious error? I think the background is upside down! I think the blue should have been at the top (where the clouds are). Oh well, it was a funny little card for someone who is going through a lot of health challenges right now and so it hopefully made him smile and encouraged him, despite the faux pas!

Happy Father's Day!

Here's a quick card. I had the watercolour paper leftover from another project. The stamps are Waltzingmouse and the clouds are Memory Box Dies. Tim Holtz Sizzix Embossing Folder for a background.

My daughter and her dad have automobiles in common. He washes them, changes the oil and checks the tire pressure; she drives them! Thought it was a good theme for today.

Watercoloured Camellias

The thank you card stash is getting low, so I thought I would try a simple watercoloured card using one of my favourite Waltzingmouse Stamps sets: Camellia.

I stamped and clear embossed the blooms all over white Tim Holtz watercolour card stock, washed them in water and then used Distress Ink reinkers to paint them in. Just used Worn Lipstick and Dried Marigold. The background was Antique Linen. I had planned to iron off the embossing, but decided I liked the contrast of the shiny white against the matte colour.

I dusted off an old Spellbinders Ribbon Slider die to cut a frame for a sentiment from the same set, stamped in Adirondack Mountain Rose ink. Some peach and white ribbon and foam tape to lift the panel off the pink and geranium back panels and we're done! I am entering this in the Waltzingmouse Fanatics Challenge to use markers, paint or other colouring mediums.

Tomorrow is Monday. Someone mentioned online that their full-time work is impeding their part-time creativity. I can relate! Thanks for stopping by!

Today's Quietfire Creations Guest Designer

... is me! In my second posting to the Quietfire Creations blog this month as guest designer, I present some really simple, quick, yet elegant cards. I hope you click on the blog link above and visit. While you are here, I will share a couple of other cards using Quietfire stamps. This first one features possibly the very first stamp I purchased from Quietfire Design way back when.

Distress Ink background, Tim Holtz Postcard Texture Fades Embossing Fold

Next up, I created an alcohol ink background for this card and silver embossed "thank you" on the top half. The bottom half features a Lace Border Dreamweavers Stencil and the Burnished Velvet technique.

And lastly, here is a card created very simply with  a wash of Springtime Twinkling H2O's on watercolor paper, then the Thoreau quote stamped with Versafine Deep Lagoon and clear embossed.

Spellbinders Labels 18, silver mirror cardstock, navy Canson Mo-Teintes

Thanks for visiting today - please go check out the Quietfire Creations blog to see more!

Courage in Rehab

I made this card for a gal who is on one of the Yahoo groups I am on (Canadian Stamp Talk). Turns out she was recently in a terrible motorcycle accident and has now been transferred from hospital and far from friends and family to begin the road to recovery in a rehabilitation unit. I just cannot imagine....

I thought this lovely hand-lettered (and then turned into a rubber stamp) sentiment from Quietfire Design was just the right encouragement. It is accompanied by another stamp that I placed inside that simply says: "Never give up."

I gold embossed the floral frame, cut it out and then watercoloured it, going for a verdis gris effect. I popped it up on pop dots to provide a shadow box effect for the sentiment. I hope it inspires the recipient to press on.

Watercoloured Phone Box

My local stamp store shared the link to Art Impressions Stamps YouTube videos, and if you have not seen these, you are in for a treat. There are a dozen loaded so far. Start here. I have not done much painting, but with this technique I felt I might have some success.

This phone booth seemed fitting for the newest member of my staff, a transplanted Brit. It's his birthday this week and I wanted to make his card somewhat personal. The phone booth is from the Art Impressions Watercolor Series 6 stamp set (also features English cottages) and the shrubbery is from the Foliage Set. I stamped everything in Sepia Archival Ink on watercolour paper, and used Tombow, Marvy and Tim Holtz Distress Markers to "paint" them in. I cut the scene into an oval with a Spellbinder die, then affixed it to a sheet of white cardstock. I placed this into a Cuttlebug Lacey Labels embossing folder and ran that through the Cuttlebug to emboss. I like how the embossed flourishes travel around - in and out of - the oval.

I stamped the ticking stripes from the Waltzingmouse Heirloom Patterns set to form a background, and distressed the edges with the same Tumbled Glass distress ink. This was a different technique for me, one that requires much more practice, but for a very first effort, I am pleased to have a usable card to show for it!