I had so much fun making my Charlie Chaplin-esque Shadowbox card that I turned right around and made another, inspired by the freebie challenge at CDAC/A Day for Daisies and the Birthdays theme at iCopic.
I also used up some punch-fruits I had left over from my Picnic card. As you can see in the close-up on the right, the cherries are glazed with Glossy Accents and the stem is two-tone baker's twine.
The challenge at A Day for Daisies is to celebrate reaching 300 members on CDAC (congrats! I'm one of them!) They're offering 3 freebies to choose from; the only requirement is that you share whatever you make with the freebie you grab. I couldn't resist playing with this lovely Happy Birthday Tower; the message cards come blank, so I added text & fills myself. This is fairly easy to do, especially with the help of the wonderfully comprehensive Digital Paper Piecing tutorial at Snappy Stampin' with Arielle.
Inspiration:
A Day for Daisies CDAC 300 Member Party
iCopic Weekly Challenge #38: All About Birthdays
Stampin' Dymonz Scrap Shack Cardmaking Group: Shadowbox card
Shadowbox Card tutorial: Splitcoast Stampers
Digital Paper Piecing tutorial Snappy Stampin' with Arielle
Stamps: Happy Birthday Tower digi by A Day for Daisies, Hampden Art, Inkadinkado, StudioG, pile of gold (for strawberry seeds) from Lucky Day set by SP & Company
Paper: Recollections, Hammermill, Colorbök
Tools: Marvy heat tool, Fiskars papercutter & deckle scissors, MS detail scissors, HP printer & ink, Adobe InDesign, Recollections punches, EK Success corner punch
Other: ZipDry glue, Versamark & Memento inks, Sakura & AtYou Spica gel pens, Copics, Offray ribbon, Stampendous embossing powder, Glossy Accents, Pink Paislee bakers twine
I simply couldn't pass up coloring this yummy Just Inklined freebie for this week's CDAC Sketch challenge. In my family (and, happily, also the family I married into), there is nothing more inviting than fruit, cheese & wine. They represent the sweetnesses of life: youth, caregiving, and experience.
Inspiration:
CDAC Sketch Challenge 26, sponsored by Just Inklined
Stamps: Digital stamp by Just Inklined, sentiment by TLC Creations
Paper: Hammermill, Recollections, Core'dinations
Tools: InDesign, HP printer & ink, Sizzix Texture Boutique, Fiskars papercutter, Marvy heat tool, Recollections punch, hand-punch, MS detail scissors
Other: ZipDry glue, Offray ribbon, ZING embossing powder, Versamark ink, sandpaper
Copics: 0, G02, YG41, YG03, YG63, FY1, Y02, Y000, C-1, C-5, E000, E50, E51, E02, E31, E33, E35, E37, E47, E17, R27, R59, B0000
First off, Crafters Digital Art Center (CDAC) is celebrating its One Year Anniversary. Wow, they've accomplished a lot in a year! They're having contests and prizes, including a big giveaway of ready-to-color flowers by Petaloo. You need to be a CDAC member to be eligible, but who isn't‽Wow, I was really motivated yesterday and made several cards. I just kept getting inspired! I was intrigued by the Crazy Challenge of "white + 1 other color", and thought it would be a perfect excuse to use my new blue embossing powder.
When I grabbed this freebie image from TLC Creations, I commented that I wanted to heat-emboss it...and I'm finally getting around to it. It worked really well: embossing with digi images is all about the paper, and I have a lot of luck printing at highest quality on glossy photo paper. You need to work fast, but as you can see it provides really full coverage, even on fine details.To sort of match the photo paper, I made the card base from lightweight brochure paper, basically a thin, matte-coated double-sided photo paper. It doesn't work for heat-embossing, oddly enough. It worked beautifully in the paper embossing machine, and has a lovely weight. I heat-embossed the flourishes onto the card before running it through my Sizzix.
Inspiration:CCH #71: Monochromatic"Joy Fold" tutorial: ABC Christmas Challenge blogStamps: Vintage Lady and Birds Silhouette digi by TLC Creations, sentiment & flourishes by StampendousPaper: HP photo paper & brochure paper, BrazzillTools: HP printer & ink, Marvy heat tool & corner punch, Sizzix Texture BoutiqueOther: ZipDry, Stampendous embossing powder, Versamark watermark ink
One of my favorite things about our neighborhood is our proximity to the Sherwood Gardens of Guildford. Every Spring they plant incredible tulips of all colors and sizes...this year there were some up to my knees! They weren't "Two-Lips" they were "Two-Hands"! We invited a couple over this year to enjoy it with us, and while chatting we realized that we love geraniums. They make such good "window box" flowers that they are familiar in so many different places in the world...just one of the things that bring us closer together!My friend summed up our shared emotions towards geraniums so beautifully: "They feel like home." I love idea of all of us with geraniums in our windows reflecting our memories of different places... She grew up in Tehran and I in Andalucia, but we still have lots in common.I realized that I know many, many people who feel the same way and so requested a Geranium image on CDAC, my favorite resource. IkesArt (based in Greece) responded immediately, and was gracious enough to work with me to create a pot of geraniums. Please visit her groovy online shop and check out the other geranium images! They are all wonderful, but I had a specific idea in mind...Some time ago, I was moved by the card and the story behind this flowerpots-on-wall card by suzARTe, and swore that I would scraplift the idea immediately. Well, that didn't quite happen, but I finally found the perfect image for it. Thank you, Blog-Pals!
Inside:
Back with message section:
For the wall background, I really wanted to create a stucco look. For the flat parts I simply stamped my watermark ink pad directly onto the paper and heat-embossed it in white. I did the same with the brick stamp, which I made out of a scrap of foam-mounted rubber. It's not cling foam, so it was a bit tricky stamping...plus, I can't believe how well it came out considering I just "eyeballed" it. Sigh, one of these days I will smarten up and stop trying to stamp clear on white...it's like writing in invisible ink!Stamps: Geranium Pots by IkesArt, corner flourish by K&Co., inside sentiment by StudioG, inside sentiment by StampendousPaper: Hammermill, RecollectionsTools: Fiskars papercutter, Marvy heat tool, MS border punch & detailing scissorsOther: ZipDry glue, Stampendous & embossing powders, Versamark watermark ink
Copics:Pots: E08, R02, E11Light pink flowers: RV11, RV23Hot pink flowers: RV04, RV23Red flowers: R59, R27, R29Leaves: G99, YG67, YG03
Another week, another fun bunch of CDAC challenges to choose from! I have so many projects on my plate, but I do loving participating in at least one challenge a week over there; it's such a great opportunity to try digi stamps by different artists.This week's Special Occasion Challenge is sponsored by Zlatoena Designs, with the theme of Birthdays. I loved her happy bunny digi and decided to do some old-fashioned paper piecing (paper piercing?). I also ended up using a lot of decorative paper, which I often don't do because I'm a bit of a hoarder! I'm very happy with how it turned out; it just sort of fell together and I'm glad to have another go-to birthday card.I'm also entering this card in the Jute, Twine or String challenge at My Partner in Crafting Crime (PCC). I've been intrigued by this challenge since it was posted, and have found myself using a lot of the pretty Bakers Twine from my stash this past week, but this is the project I'm entering!Inspiration:CDAC Special Occasion Challenge sponsored by Zlatoena DesignsMy Partner in Crafting Crime Challenge #27: Jute, Twine or StringStamps: Rabbit + Present by Zlatoena Designs; sentiment from Hero ArtsPaper: K&Co., Core'dinations, Brazzill, Recollections, the Paper Co.Tools: Crop-O-Dile, Fiskars papercutter, MS detail scissors & border punchOther: brads from Michaels, Sakura & Elmers gel pens, FB2 Copic marker, Memento ink, ZipDry glue, ZIG glue pen, MS flocking, stash bakers twine
Update 6/3/11: Wow! This won (randomly) the CDAC Special Occasion Challenge.
After the creative whirlwind last week that was the Stampin' Dymonz 10-day Tag Challenge, I'm having some trouble going back to good ole cardmaking! As always, there is plenty of inspiration at this week's CDAC challenges. I started with the Embellishment challenge sponsored by Shannon's Sentiments & the Sketch Challenge sponsored by DigiDrawn. Not only did I have a great time making them, I'm very happy with how they came out. 
For this card, I tried my hand at "warping" the sentiment in Photoshop, with okay results. I need to practice that.... I added some pink, heat-embossed detail to the flowers by using a Versamark watermark pen.
Inspiration:CDAC Embellishment Challenge sponsored by Shannon's SentimentsSupplies: Digi stamps by Shannon's Sentiments (thank you for the freebies!), silicon border stamp by My Mind's Eye, Recollections, Brazzill and Hammermill cardstocks, Celebrate It and Offray ribbons, ColorBoz pigment ink, ZipDry and ZIG glues, Fiskars papercutter, MS detailing scissors, Versamark watermark ink, Stampendous embossing powder, Adobe PhotoShop & Indesign, HP printer & inkCopics: Y000, Y08, Y17, Y04, E02, RV21, YR04, YG03, G07, E000
Despite appearances, part of this Sketch challenge was K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Silly), and I kinda did. You know, kinda. I really wanted to use the freebie Daisy image by DigiDrawn for the corner element, so I used her Fox digi to complement it.Inspiration:CDAC Sketch Challenge sponsored by DigiDrawnDigi stamps: Fox and Daises by DigiDrawn (thank you for the freebies!)Supplies: Hammermill cardstocks, Celebrate It ribbon, Versamark watermark ink, ZipDry and ZIG glues, Fiskars papercutter and deckle scissors, MS detailing scissors, Pop-dots, Stampendous fun flock and embossing powders, Adobe PhotoShop & Indesign, HP printer & ink, Recollections bradCopics: Y000, Y08, Y17, Y04, E02, RV21, YR04, YG03, G07, E000
I have at least four projects I need to complete like yesterday, so naturally the other morning I found myself looking at the new CDAC challenges and ended up spending much of the day having a blast with their Embellishment Challenge (and its freebie!) sponsored by Stamp-n-doodle. The card just came together all at once, but it then took me a few days to complete this post!The challenge is to "fill your project with embellishments - pinks, purples, glitter, flowers, break out your faux pearls, shiny stones, etc." and I'm not sure how well my card applies to the challenge...but this is where my ideas took me. Oh, and I don't have many of the aforementioned embellishments, which was also a major issue!Hopefully this sweet poodle skirt (dress?) cut file counts as an embellishment! As soon as I saw this image by Stamp-n-doodle, I just knew I wanted to cut some poodle skirts! I can't believe this beautiful file was a freebie; I edited it just a bit, in that I cut a separate poodle (I had to cut out the path points on the leash in SCAL...there's gotta be an easier way?) and put a slight "shadow" on the leash to make it a bit easier to cut out.
This wonderful image put me in my mind of the first Grease movie; if you've ever done much local theater, no doubt you've seen a version or two of the musical. My favorite song is "There are Worse Things I Could Do": "...I could hurt someone like me / out of spite or jealously. / I don't steal and I don't lie / but I can feel and I cry, / a fact I bet you never knew. / But to cry in front of you... / That's the worst thing I could do." Rizzo always seemed to me as a slightly better role model for the young woman than Sandra Dee's hopeless devotion, in the grand scheme of things.Inspiration:CDAC Embellishment Challenge: We are going GIRLY!Digi stamp: 50s Dreamin' by Stamp-n-doodleCut files: Poodle Skirt by Brittany's SVG FilesSentiment border: Guitar Hero set by StudioGSupplies: Core'dinations glittered cardstock, DCWV paper, Offray ribbon, Recollections cardstock & border punch, ZipDry glue, MS deatil scissors, Fiskars papercutter, tulleCopics: E000, E02, E50, E51, E31, E33, E17, Y17, RV21, RV23, V06, V17, C-1, YG63, YG67, FB2, FRV1, FYG1
Update 5/5/11: This card was awarded this badge from the CDAC Dream Team. Thanks ladies!
Wow, I had a super duper weekend! I met lots of new crafters thanks to Stampin' Dymonz Scrap Shack's Mad About Paper Blog Hop, and find myself with several new followers. Helloooo everybody!
I didn't do really any challenges last week, so this week I decided to start anew with the sketch challenge at CDAC and the color combo at Color Throwdown. The freebie Butterfly digi stamp offered by McMahon Five Designs for the CDAC challenge really lent itself to this lovely palette. Thank you!
Since I was working digitally anyway, I took the color combo image into PhotoShop and matched the colors: I used the eyedropper to grab the color and then put it as a color overlay onto the butterfly (Layer/Layer Style/Color Overlay/Screen mode). I always printed butterflies in the combo colors onto the inside of the card.
I was inspired to try stacking differently colored layers by Anne Baity on CDAC (here's her incredible cherry blossom card on CDAC; I'll post her blog if I can find it.)I used physical stamps for both the tag and and the sentiment, which was super fun. The sentiment is also clear-embossed, because why not!
Digi stamp: Butterfly Breeze by McMahon Five Designs
Inspiration:
Color: Color Throwdown #133Sketch & image: CDACsc19Supplies: Paper Studio. Brazzill and Core'dinations cardstocks, ZipDry glue, embroidery thread, StazOn ink, Martha Stewart chalk ink and detailing scissors, CraftSmart(?) scalloping scissors, Crop-O-DileII (for border on plum pieces), SCAL & Cricut, 09KutUps font (for scalloped circles), Adobe PhotoShop & InDesign, HP printer & ink, emery board, pop-dots, Copic markers for (coloring pop-dots)
I ran across Crafty Ann's Digi Stamps when I bought her adorable Easy Chair for some Holiday Thank-you notes, and was later pleased to see that she's also on the Crafter's Digital Art Center (CDAC). So I was really excited to see that Crafty Ann's is hosting this month's CDAC Color Challenge, and is offering a lovely freebie for us to use. The challenge is to use purple, lilac and pink, which aren't usual Chinese-theme colors, but boy are they gorgeous!This project overlapped with the arrival of a box full of crafting goodies from my mom, including Chinese-inspired stickers and a TON of glitter mist. I really had a tough time not using all my pretty new stickers (did I mention they are glitter-embossed?!), but I really wanted Crafty Ann's Good Fortune Lantern the star. I guess I could have omitted the use of stickers all together, but I couldn't pass up this lovely frame. I know that it sorta messes up the color scheme, but I just really like how it works!As for the glitter spray, it's all over this project! I stamped the lantern pattern in three shades of purples onto pink cardstock, and then gave each corner a spray of purple. I used the same spray to color the lantern. First, I printed the image onto vellum and then clear-embossed it. Boy, that works great! Many thanks to CDAC for the tutorial. Then I sprayed it (before cutting it out), and added details with gel pens. I also added a little color with Copics onto the back of the piece.I think my favorite part about this card is all the texture. It's lovely to look at, even better to touch!
Inspiration: CDAC Color Challenge cdaccc19: purple, lilac & pinkDigi Stamp: Good Fortune Lantern by Crafty Ann's Supplies: HP printer & ink, Recollections and DCWV cardstocks, Recollections vellum, MS detailing scissors, ZipDry glue, Fiskars papercutter, MS and ColorBox inks, Inkadinkado stamp, Tattered Angels glimmer mist (Haunted Shadows), Elmer's and Sakura gel pens, Copic markers, Sparkling Embossed sticker by Joy!Crafts
The Crafter's Digital Art Center (CDAC) is celebrating reaching over 5000 members with a bunch of giveaways and contests. Check out all the yummy stuff you could win:
So click on over to CDAC and check it out. If you're not already a member, I highly recommend joining the fun. I've learned lots from this group, and know you would too.
I've been having tons of fun with my new set of watercolor pencils; I really love how the images turn out, especially the "vintage" ones. I've become really intrigued by the vintage style long-loved by cardmakers, but I don't tend to use enough embellishments... But I've gained enough confidence to really enjoy "distressing" paper, so I tried my hand at a few of vintage-y cards.
There are a ton of stripes and/or dots challenges out there right now, but my first stop had to be Delicious Doodles' Challenge #10, sponsored by TLC Creations. I totally heart TLC Creations' vintage images and wordart, so I decided to use one of each for this challenge. [Skip to more about this card]
This week's "Theme" challenge at CDAC is "to make a birthday card suitable for one friend to give another, looking like it was made at least 100 years ago, in other words, really old." Hmm, quite the challenge! I made a card with the gorgeous freebie from Nicecrane Designs, but it didn't look very old, so I made another.
Using the Color Throwdown combo for guidance, I colored the image with watercolor pencils (not easy with a digi image...I had a lot of issues with the printer ink spreading), aged a brown mat that I had around, and dry-embossed a lace pattern onto some light green ("kiwi".) I also wrapped a piece of diamond-patterned paper over the card crease. Everything's sanded, and aged with Antique Linen distress ink. The ribbon and button were things I was saving for a special project.
Theme: CDAC Holiday/Special Occasion Challenge #cdachsoc16
Color: Color Throwdown #126: Early Espresso, Kiwi Kiss, Marina Mist, Old Olive
Digi stamp: Incredible Friends DS2 by Ignacio for Nicecrane Designs
Supplies: decorative papers by Paper Studio, Recollections cardstocks, Tim Holtz Antique Linen distress ink, StazOn ink, HP printer & ink, Cricut + SCAL, Fiskars papercutter, scallop scissors, circle punch, and texture plate + tool, found ribbon & button, emery board and nail file, Loew-Cornell watercolor pencils
I had printed out a couple of these Butterfly Fairy digi stamps by TLC Creations, to color at my leisure. Between the Spots & Stripes challenge and the sweet color combo at Color Dare, I knew I had the project for them. I sprayed one of the copies with a light spritz-and-a-half of yellow spray ink, which has a nice glimmer as well. I cut the details out of the second copy, and again used watercolor pencils. I especially like how using yellow for the wings makes them look almost translucent.
I just couldn't resist colorizing the lovely sentiment digi, which was a snap in Photoshop (Layers/Layer Style/Color Overlay). And I can't tell you how tickled I was to find these striped "plum" brads! There's a lot going on here, but I find it all comes together in a sweet, sunny way. Thanks for the inspiration, everyone!
Update 2/4/11: This card was featured, in incredible company, on Create with TLC.
Theme: Delicious Doodles Challenge #10: Spots and/or Stripes
Color: Color Dare #94: Pretty in Pink, Pear Pizazz, Perfect Plum
Digi stamps: Vintage Butterfly Fairy and Nothing is Impossible by TLC Creations
Supplies: decorative papers by Paper Studio, MS detailing scissors, ZipDry glue, Recollections cardstocks, HP printer & ink, Cricut + SCAL, Fiskars papercutter, deckle scissors, Offray ribbon, Kurio brads, Loew-Cornell watercolor pencils, Inkadinkado spray ink
I've been inspired to print-and-cut digi stamps ever since I read Jeannie's excellent technique post at the Polka Cabana; I haven't done it the old-fashioned way since I got my Cricut and SCAL. Jeannie shows you how to use digital papers, but I decided to be really old-fashioned and use some of my Stampin' Up! paper. I printed Crafty Ann's adorable Easy Chair digi stamp onto pink-on-pink and green-on-green, text-patterned SU paper, and then cut out details from the pink, ran them through my sticker machine, and adhered them to the green. Isn't this a funky chair?! I want it!
Mom took a corner-bookmark class and brought me the directions. I was really impressed with how cute they are! I've been wanting to try it again, so I was pleased to see the Bookmark challenge at Crafter's Digital Art Center (CDAC). SU paper is perfect for this, because of it's weight, size, and silky texture. I scalloped some scraps for the frills. For the sentiment, I used this sweet one from my new Hero Arts set. I've recently discovered that my ColorBox liquid chalks, which usually are poor for stamping because they don't dry well, really pop when I clear-emboss over them. This also multiplies my stamp-color choices!
Digi stamp: Easy Chair by Crafty Ann's
Inspiration:
SP Color Combo #84: Pale Plum, Rose Red, Wild Wasabi
CDAC Other Theme Challenge (cdacotc15): Bookmark
Supplies: Stampin' Up! paper (Subtles Patterns 2010), ColorBox liquid chalk, HP printer & ink, Fiskars papercutter and scalloped scissors, ZipDry glue, MS detailing scissors, Xyron sticker machine, MeltArt clear embossing powder, Marvy heat tool, Hero Arts polymer stamp
My favorite use of this bookmark (top right photo): Keeping Time, Passager Books
The good folks over at Card Cupids are having a Valentines challenge, and I've been wanting to send some cards to them so this seemed like a perfect opportunity. Okay, I'll just admit that I didn't read all of the directions before I started this challenge, so these 4 identical cards were just sent off without a special note (just the required form). Hopefully they'll make it by the deadline of Jan. 17 (er, Monday), but if not, I'm pretty sure they can still be used.
I recently purchased this Flowering Tree digi stamp from PriscillaStyles and got the the Hearts version as a freebie. Well, now I'm going to have to buy it too because the stamps together work so well for a magic picture card! Digital magic cards don't usually take me too long, but I had some time so I colored both images with copics and hand-stamped the cardstock. I like how the store-bought Valentines paper I used for the frames matches so well with the handmade stuff. This card might well become this year's Valentine...
As part of their Valentines Day card challenge, Card Cupids has teamed up with My Pink Stamper and Viva Decor to offer a HUGE giveaway. Here are the rules:
Three Ways to Enter:
1. Post about their blog candy and what you need to do to win the prize. Leave a comment on their blog with a link to your post.
2. Create Valentine’s Cards for Card Cupids and add your link. Each time you create a post with new cards, you can add a link.
3. Send in the cards you created to Card Cupids to be given to the children at The Children’s Hospital at Legacy Emanuel. For each card you send in, you will receive 1 entry. Be sure to follow their donation guidelines.
Hope you'll join in!
I was very moved by this recent wordart freebie at Create with TLC: "You're not alone; I'm right here with you." So when I needed a sentiment for my card for this week's Midnight Madness Sketch I had the perfect one. Just by chance I'd chosen another lovely TLC Creations freebie as the digi stamp.
In case you're not aware, the Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge blog is maintained by the same team that does the Crafters' Digital Art Center (CDAC). Coincidentally, the image I used for this card was given as a freebie in celebration of CDAC's reaching 240 members by TLC Creations, who I first learned of through CDAC.
I love using these woodcut-like images to practice with my copic markers, as the shading decisions have pretty much been made for me. I'm learning, slowly but surely. I'm still nervous about backgrounds, so I cheated a bit and added a blue-tint gradient to the image in InDesign before printing it. It's not very apparent (especially since I shadowed everything with a light Copic marker), but does make a difference.
I wasn't sure about using actual buttons as suggested in the sketch, until I saw this that this week's Delightful Challenge is Buttons. Challenge delightfully accepted! Sewing on the buttons didn't take too long and I love the look, so I will try this again (when I can find the bag of craft buttons that's somewhere in this house.) I shaded the horizontal strips with red ink and then "aged" the frame elements with an emery board and distress inks, which was more work than one would think...I need to find a better sanding method. I added some berry bling with glitter glue around the button brad.
While I was making this card, it started to snow. Such a peaceful scene, inside and out! 
Digi stamp: Picking Berries Vintage by TLC Creations
Wordart: You're Not Alone by TLC Creations
Inspiration:
Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge #85
Delightful Challenge: Buttons
Supplies: Recollections & Core'dinations cardstocks, HP printer & ink, Adobe InDesign, Fiskars papercutter and scalloped scissors, ZipDry glue, Tim Holtz scissors & Distress ink (Fired Brick, Antique Linen & Mustard Seed), Stickles (Xmas Red, Cinnamon & Candy Cane), Metallic red Sakura Gelly Roll pen, emery board, button brad from Oriental Trading Co., Michaels variegated craft cord & needle, Copic Ciao B color set
Don't get me wrong, I must have a certain amount of confidence to enter—what is it now?—seven challenges a week, but sometimes the enormity of the talent out there weighs on me. You know how it is: You're standing in the kitchen with your glasses fogging up from the heat of the embossing gun and you think to yourself, Perhaps I should leave this to the professionals. But then you suck on your fingers and remember how good it feels to sound your barbaric yawp over the blogs of the world...
The Midnight Madness Sketch Challenges by priscillastyles especially make me feel like this, which is in fact a compliment. So many talented people inspiring so many talented people! But I find myself entering their challenge week after week, I guess because of that yawp thing I mentioned earlier (original quote from Walt Whitman.) I still feel very green and creatively raw when it comes to cardmaking, but challenges like these help me develop my skills and keep me happily occupied. Thanks to all who've peeked at my cards! and especially thanks for commenting.
Anyhoo, I had lots of fun with this week's sketch:
I've really taken to coloring stamps on vellum, because it's a bit easier to keep within the lines and the end result really pops. I read about this technique somewhere in the blogosphere, where you color on the back of stamped vellum. I also broke out my brand new mist, and I'm hooked. I used painter's tape to mask the main stamp and spray on the mist background. It worked so well I couldn't believe it.
I choose a green/brown color palette because I'm in a flowery mood but can't separate myself from the autumn tapping on my window.
Inspiration: Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge #78
Stamps: Russian Dolls & Flower Circle Border by Hero Arts; silicon stamp by gstudio
Supplies: Tsukineko walnut ink antiquing solution (Eucalyptus); Recollections cardstock & vellum, StazOn brown ink, Marvy & American Craft paint pens, Copic markers E33 & E35, Tim Holtz scissors, Fiskars papercutter, Cricut personal cutter, SCAL2 software
So I walked away, briefly, from my new favorite plastic stamp and had some fun mixing two challenges to make this little Thanksgiving card.
I really liked this month's CDAC color combo and its free digis — altho I decided to pair the lovely sentiment with my go-to-gal, Angel Stacie from paperfacesdesign — and chose the handsome sketch at Paper Pretties Wednesday Challenge. I used copic markers for the digi's background ... I think I like it!
And yes, the main circle spins.
Paper Pretties Sketch Challenge PWC126
CDAC Color Challenge CDACCC10
Word art: Tlc Creations
Digi stamp: Angel Stacie by Therese Travis / paperfacesdesign
Supplies: Recollections, Core-dinations and ColorBok cardstocks, ZipDry glue, Tim Holtz scissors, Fiskars papercutter, circle punch, decorative scissors and punch/embosser, HP printer & ink, Adobe InDesign, Sakura Gelly Roll pens, Marvy LePlumeII pens, Copic E33& 0 (blender), stash brad
This card is also a celebration of my recent Fisk-a-teer status (#7522). I was so pleased to discover that all the fancy scissors and punches in my stash are Fiskars brand. Way to represent!
I've been really into rubber stamping so I haven't been visiting the Crafter's Digital Art Center (CDAC) much. But I'm getting a little bit of stamp-hand, so I decided to take some time with digi stamps. Because Therese Travis introduced me to CDAC, I like to use her images for their challenges. However, they always offer yummy freebies from different artists, so I've taken to mixing & matching the images.
My attempt at this month's sketch challenge came out pretty cute considering there's a ton going on! See, I also wanted to break out my new Christmas cutting files...
I actually had a lot of hits-and-misses with this card. I wanted to make a border with the presents from Firecracker Designs, but I couldn't get it to print dark enough, so I stamped the sentiment from that file onto a piece of ribbon. All I had was satin ribbon, but I do like the concept and how the lettering retains its personality.
Digi stamps: Angel Rainie (PaperFacesDesigns); present & sentiment (Firecracker Designs by Pamela)
Digital cut files: Santa's North Pole Workshop series from SVG Cuts
Supplies: K&Company designer double-sided cardstock, Core'dinations cardstock, HP printer & ink, Tim Holtz scissors, ZipDry glue, Sakura Gelly Roll pens, Elmer's CraftBond gel pens, Sharpies, chalk by Pebbles Inc., Offray ribbon
When I started my love affair with piano-hinge books, my biggest challenge was how to neatly double-side on pages that were between one and three inches. Ol' Bessi, my 10-year-old HP 3-in-one InkJet printer, actually does a fairly good job at double-siding, but it's always a crapshoot whether it will work. Honestly, that's the truth across the board in printing. Printing truly proves chaos theory, if you ask me. Also, I needed to cut the pages on my Cricut personal cutter, and there was no way I would be able to do that many times in a row with less than 1/16 inch margin of error. It would be easier to hand-cut the pages in that case, but I didn't want my books to be that handmade. Anyhoo, during the same time I was trying to make a magic picture card with a digi stamp, but the image just wouldn't dry on the acetate. So, in a classic "You got chocolate on my peanut butter!" moment, I realized that I had in fact created a way to stamp the image. I know, I know, what's the point of stamping an image that is printable? Gee, where's your imagination? It adds a completely different effect, plus it totally solves my book printing problem.
The above image, from my poemoir "The Door Won't Stop It", shows my first attempt at stamping the text onto the pre-cut pages. It's basically digital letter-pressing.
This method works perfectly for my needs, so I decided to try it with a full-color image. The results are mixed, but it's so much fun that I thought I'd throw together a quick how-to:
You don't have to do this, but I pre-printed the sentiments and backing papers onto cardstock first. It just worked out that I was able to use just one piece of white.
Reverse/flip/mirror the image you want to stamp (including the positioning), and print at highest quality/output onto your acetate. This only works with inkjet printers . . . I think laser pinters will probably actually print on the acetate.
Carefully place the acetate, ink-side down, onto your cardstock. The blurred effect in this photo shows what happens when you try to do this with one hand while taking a picture . . . it's best to use two hands. In this case, I printed everything on letter-size paper with a half-inch margin, to help with the alignment.
Transfer the image onto the cardstock by rubbing it. Depending on the effect you want and the detail of the image, you can use anything from a bone folder to your finger. My favorite: the top of my extra-large glue stick. However, only use one method. This is what happens when you get nervous and rub it a little more with your fingernail:
As you can see, how you rub on the image really makes a difference in the color coverage. Here's a better, more even version:
Here's the card I made with the images, for the September Sketch Challenge at Crafter's Digital Art Center (CDAC).
Sketch by Lauretta's Digital Stamps
Technique: Spotlighting (there's a great tutorial for true spotlighting at splitcoaststampers)
Birdie digi stamp by paperfacesdesigns
Supplies: Core'dinations cardstock, Stickles, ribbon from Target, HP printer, Recollections cardstock, Grafix clear craft plastic, ZipDry glue, pop-up dots
![cg says [something loudly]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0FPmCZqXj2-YcQaqnchsA3zKcMX4MIsNrt-Q1wM9gJSyUJH_a6g_V1m_JKR0tKEOGU6F1AFBv8al43phB58tEMIPcT3G0wXzmJpswV9I5mFB7zOhpv8a8dpEAR6i9uS0mkOQKp_pC6PE/s1600/blogheader.gif)
I had so much fun making my Charlie Chaplin-esque Shadowbox card that I turned right around and made another, inspired by the freebie challenge at CDAC/A Day for Daisies and the Birthdays theme at iCopic.
Inspiration:
