Spellbinders Glitter Cardstock

 Spellbinders generously sent me a selection of their gorgeous glitter cardstock.  It comes in metallic colors: gold, silver, and champagne, plus deep jewel tones and sweet spring tones.  I made 2 cards.  

supplies: white, purple, Green Apple, and gold glitter cardstock, Towering Blooms dies and sentiment

These unusual floral dies were released back in November as the Dies of the Month, and I only got to use them once, so I enjoyed playing with them again, adding the glitter to small areas of the design this time.  

For my 2nd card, I let the glitter cardstocks be the star, cutting them into stripes as a background for a die-cut flower.

supplies: white cardstock, Spring Tones glitter cardstocks, Peony Celebration die, Curved Everyday Sentiment glimmer plate/die, gold glimmer hot foil, adhesive foam

Love these soft spring colors!  Thanks for your visit today!

And once again I'm entering these into this week's Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge: Anything Goes

Altenew April Inspiration Challenge

I need to be doing more challenges, so I found this one from Altenew, their monthly inspiration challenge.

The beautiful inspiration photo was taken at Gooch's Beach in Kennebunkport, Maine, a place that holds my heart!  We try to get to the area at least once a year.  Here's my entry, inspired by the colors, of course, and the horizontal lines..

supplies: white and slate grey cardstock, Altenew Lush Garden stamps and matching dies, Golden Sunset, Tea Party, and Rock Collection inks, sentiment die from (retired) Flower Arrangement die set, enamel dots, Spellbinders brush stroke stencil

Keep your fingers crossed for me!  And enjoy your Sunday!  I think spring has finally arrived here, and we plan to be outside as much as possible! 

Edited to add: this card was one of 4 winners at the Altenew April Inspiration Challenge!

Stencil Masking

 My Favorite Things has some "Smart Masks", which can be used with stencils or stamps to give a border all around and a natural area to stamp a sentiment.  I ordered a High Low Strip masking stencil and a fun set of sentiment stamps that will fit with it, and made 3 cards today.

supplies: white cardstock, MFT Flower Fusion layering stencils, altenew mini ink cubes from Lapis Lazuli, Enchanted Garden, and Sweet Dreams collections, and Lime, MFT Smart Mask High Low Strip, Essential Messages 

Then I shifted the mask upward, chose a Greetery stencil set, and inked this card in warm colors.

supplies: white and bright pink cardstock, The Greetery Petal Pushers stencils, teeny bikini, melon, sunshine, firefly, and volcano lake inks, MFT High Low Strip masking stencil, Essential Messages, enamel dots

And 1 more, just cause it's fun to play with colors!

supplies: white and purple cardstock, The Greetery Petal Pushers layering stencils, wilted violet,ripe persimmon, mustard seed, and mowed lawn distress inks, MFT Smart Mask High Low Strip, Essential Messages, enamel dots

These masking stencils come in 4 varieties, each in either a vertical or a horizontal perspective, and I think they're a great addition to our layering stencils and even stamps to make a card a little more interesting, yet still 1 layer!

It's an Anything Goes week at the Simon Wednesday challenge, so I'll be entering these this week.

Thanks for stopping by!

BetterPress!!

I had been holding out investing in the BetterPress system from Spellbinders, but it is included in the current Spring Cleaning Sale ending tonight at midnight, and that tipped me over!  So today I'm sharing my first attempt using this system.

supplies: pebble cotton cardstock, floral Press plate, black BetterPress ink, all included in BetterPress Letterpress system,  sentiment from Sentiments of Wonder, Zig markers, pale green cardstock as a mat

Yes, I had that "Ohhhhhh" moment when the pressed image was revealed, just like everyone else has!  I chose the pebble (pale grey) cotton cardstock included in the kit, and was so pleasantly surprised with my results!  No smudges and  a lovely crisp indention of the image, even that teensy sentiment!  And it couldn't be any simpler to achieve!!  

As I'm not good at coloring, I decided to use my Zig markers to just follow along the details of the design and add a bit of color.  They are water-based, which is what is recommended with the system.

For those of you who may wonder as I did, will this system work with our own cardstock and favorite inks?  So after I made my first printing above, I used my usual Hammermill white cardstock, Premium Color Copy Color, 100#, first with the included black ink, and then with my own VersaMark Onyx Black ink, which is my go-to black ink.  Both gave a perfect print, but there was no impression made on either attempt. In essence, the plate acted like a stamp.  That's just my experience so far, and you can make your own decision on whether you will want to use the plates   I think the amazing details that the plates can make are a plus, and don't forget that you can also use them with glimmer foil in your hot foil machine with just as crisp an image (see my results with that HERE).

Hope this will be of some help to you if you're also considering the BetterPress system. 

Woodblock Wednesday: Dots & Flowers

 Here's my card for this month's Woodblock Wednesday over at Amy's blog!  I chose a background stamp dated 2009 from Hero Arts called Dots & Flowers.

supplies: white cardstock, a woodgrain dp, Hero Arts S5213 Dots and Flowers woodblock, embossed in white, Memory Box (retired) Daisy Silhouette dies, natural twine, Pink Fresh Studio Perfect Sentiment stamp and matching die, Fluttering Butterflies washi tape and matching die

 

I'm so glad Amy is keeping her Woodblock Wednesday challenge going again this year - otherwise I'd probably just be admiring these treasures from afar!  Thanks, Amy!

Folkart Flower Turnabout Cards

 Here's the latest Turnabout design from Concord and 9th - I can't seem to resist any of them!  I made 2 cards with it today.

For my first card, I stamped the design, then die-cut the word happy from it, added the script sentiment, and popped the panel above a solid A2 coral panel.

supplies: white, black, and coral/orange cardstock, Folkart Flower Turnabout stamps, abandoned coral, ripe persimmon, mustard seed, and mowed lawn oxide inks, (retired) MFT Happy die, Spellbinders Smooth Lines Mix and Match sentiment die, adhesive foam

I switched to cool colors for my 2nd design, and stamped a sentiment on a trimmed down panel.

supplies: white, green apple, and audrey blue cardstock, Folkart Flower Turnabout stamps, twisted citron, salvaged patina, mowed lawn, and peacock feathers oxide inks, sentiment from Harvest Wreath turnabout stamps

I love the colorful panels that you can create with these sets, and it's fun to find colors that work together.  Today I used all oxide ink colors.

Thanks for your visit today - hope you're having a great Sunday!

Birthday Wishes

 You can never have too many birthday cards, so I pulled out some older dies and made a feminine pastel one.  The flowers and leaves were all cut from paint chips!

supplies: white and baby blue cardstock, paint chips in pinks, greens, and yellows, Altenew Garden Picks and Rose Flurries dies, PTI Scallops Mix & Mat dies, Curved Everyday Sentiments glimmer plate and die set, rose gold glimmer foil

After constructing my flowers and leaves, I arranged them and glued them to the pretty lacey panel, then lifted the whole thing above my pale blue card base.  I used rose-gold glimmer foil for my sentiment.

I really enjoyed putting this together; thanks for visiting me today!

Blackout Embossing Technique

 I have been wanting to try the Blackout Embossing technique where you emboss a design with your folder, turn it around so that the design is debossed, color in the details, then swipe a black ink pad over the whole thing.  It's a scary scenario, but the results I've seen have been pretty amazing.

I chose a 3D folder called Floral Harmony.  Here are my results.

supplies: white cardstock, Simon Says Stamp Floral Harmony 3D embossing folder, alcohol markers, VersaFine Onyx Black ink, Spellbinders Heartfelt Scallops die, and Curved Everyday Sentiments glimmer plate and die, black glimmer foil

It's a WOW moment when you swipe your colored image with a black ink pad!  I didn't get perfect coverage in some places - perhaps my ink is getting dry?  But it's certainly a wonderful tool for us to have to get more mileage out of our embossing folders!

If you're interested HERE is my use of this folder in the normal way.

If you've tried this, I'd love any hints you may have.  What black ink do you use?  

Thanks for your visit!

Lilacs From Me to You

I have loved lilacs forever - they bring back so many memories of growing up, probably enhanced by their magical scent.  Here's another play with my new goodies from The Greetery.

supplies: white and periwinkle cardstock, The Greetery Botanicuts Lilacs, distress inks in shaded lilac, wilted violet, blueprint sketch, mowed lawn, and rustic wilderness, finger daubers, Spellbinders Postage Edge Rectangle, Hemstitch Rectangle, and sentiment from Curved Everyday Sentiments Glimmer Plate and die set, champagne glimmer foil

This is a set that I know I'll use for as long as I make cards!  

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Stampendous All the Sentiments Release

A few days ago Stampendous had a new release called All the Sentiments.  There are sentiment sets for sympathy cards, birthday cards, and 1 for all occasion.  Today I have 3 cards that use sentiments from 3 of these new stamp sets.

supplies: white, black, pale yellow, and pale green cardstock, All the Sentiments stamps and die set, Criss-Cross Motif 3D embossing folder, white pigment ink, a daisy die, gold enamel dot

I particularly like the font on the script sentiments in this set, and that the accompanying/finishing sentiments are in block print - makes for a nice mix! 

It's a good idea to have a set of sympathy sentiments in our arsenal, as these cards are so hard to make to begin with.  Having an appropriate sentiment is a big help!  This particular set also includes this leafy sprig stamp, too. Here I colored it a bit like a forget-me-not, and tucked it behind the sentiment.

supplies: white and pale blue cardstock, new Stampendous Sincere Sentiments, Essential Arches dies

And lastly, I mixed some sentiments with some other Stampendous pre-printed images that I fussy-cut to add to my design.

supplies: white, black, and dark coral cardstock, new Birthday Messages stamps, Hope of Spring Background (coneflowers and butterfly), Postage-edge dies

You can never have enough sentiment stamps - I hope you'll give these new ones a 2nd look!  Thanks for stopping by today.

Spellbinders Glimmering Flowers Release

 Spellbinders is releasing a new collection called Glimmering Flowers!  I was excited to get a little suite of products from it: a glimmer plate and stencil bundle called Glimmering Peonies and a set of glimmer sentiments and a die to cut them out called Curved Everyday Sentiments.  Here's what I did with them.

supplies: white, doll pink, and gold foil cardstock, Glimmering Peonies plate and matching stencils, Cherry Blossom and Green Valley mini ink cubes, Curved Everyday Sentiments glimmer plates and matching banner dies, Champagne glimmer foil

Peonies are everyone's favorite flowers!  I used the 5 stencils to color mine in soft pinks and greens after foiling the image using Champagne glimmer foil - I love this subtle gold!  The sentiment set has 14 different sentiments for all occasions - I know it will become a staple!  I also like that you foil 7 sentiments at a time, then use the included die to cut them apart - so much easier than foiling them one at a time!  I used the die to cut out some extra banners from gold foiled cardstock, and used 2 of them to frame up my sentiment before popping it above the panel.

This collection also includes a similar suite featuring buttercups, if you're so inclined.  I hope you'll give this collection a look!

A Birthday Card

 I need a birthday card soon, and remembered this Simon stamp set from a card kit - I liked the sentiment stamp that could be colored in, so that's where I started.  Since this is for a man, I kept my colors on the cool side, and liked the idea of adding a leafy embossed background.

supplies: white, Audrey Blue, and green cardstock, Simon Let's Celebrate stamps, markers to color, Spellbinders Branching Out embossing folder, swiped with teal and green inks

Since "Happy Birthday" is the theme over at the Simon Wednesday Challenge, I'll be entering this card there.  It's their 15th birthday!

Thanks for stopping by - will you be watching for the eclipse today?  We're in a good area for watching, except that at this time of year, getting a clear day is not something I'd expect, so time will tell!

Spellbinders Club Kits for April

The Spellbinders Club Kits are available now through April 27.  The theme this month is stitching!

My first card uses both the Glimmer of the month: Sew Amazing and the Stitching dies of the month: Stitched Wall Hanging.  I was sent some Moondust glimmer foil, so that's what dictated my colors for this card.  

supplies: white, aquas, and green cardstock, Sew Amazing glimmer plates (background and sentiment), Moondust glimmer foil, Stitched Wall Hanging dies, 3 strands of embroidery floss in 2 aquas and a green

The glimmer plates this month include these 6 stitching panels, which I lined up vertically on white cardstock and foiled with Moondust glimmer foil.  I also foiled and reverse-foiled all 4 of the sentiments in that set, and cut them out with the included banner die.  Then I stitched flowers and leaves and cut out some leafy branches and buds from the Stitched Wall Hanging set, and arranged them around one of the reverse-foiled sentiments.

Next, here is a card that shows more of the elements in the Stitching kit.  I placed the finished image onto the new 3D embossing folder called One Stitch at a Time, and added a needle and thread from the Large Dies of the Month: Pins and Needles Jar.

supplies: kraft, peach, white, yellow, mint, and green cardstock, silver and gold foiled cardstock, peach embroidery floss, Stitched Wall Hanging dies, One Stitch at a Time 3D embossing folder, needle and floss from Pins and Needles Jar 

Here is a mix of the Large Dies, the Clear Stamp and Dies, and the regular embossing folder.

supplies: white, cotton candy, pastel green, yellow, silver, and gold foil cardstock, Pins and Needles Jar dies, Happy Stitching clear stamps and matching dies, and Faux Stitched Petal embossing folder

It was fun to put together these pretty scissors and make a couple bobbins of embroidery floss!  You can see the needle and thread I used in my previous card once again.  These are just a few of the Large Dies for this month - the kit includes a large jar with a pin cushion top and lots of things to fill the jar with: floss skein, buttons, a thimble, safety and straight pins.  This set would make a great shaped card!

My next card features the Small Dies of the Month: Faux-Stitched Sentiments and Floss, with return appearances of the 3D folder and the Clear Stamp of the Month.

white, black, coral, green, yellow, and gold foil cardstock, Faux-Stitched Sentiments and Floss dies, One Stitch at a Time 3D folder, and a sub-sentiment from Happy Stitching stamp set

These dies include 6 dies to make the embroidery floss skeins, plus 5 large word dies with stitching details.  I stamped the sub-sentiment before embossing my white panel.

And finally, here are the Stencils of the Month: a 5-piece set called Rainbow Floss Background.  I used my favorite current colors of ink to make them.

supplies: white and black cardstock, Rainbow Floss Background stencils, Caboodle Bonus Pins & Needles Sentiments dies

I used one of the Caboodle Bonus  dies for this month as my sentiment.  

You can look HERE for information on Spellbinders Clubs.  Each is available only from the 6th until the 27th of each month.  If you click on my links under each card, you can see the specifics of each product.  You can subscribe to each of our 10 kits separately, (and you can "unjoin" a subscription at any time without any penalty), or you can get them all, saving 60% AND get the free bonus dies by choosing the Deluxe Caboodle!  

Yana's Floral Celebration - 4 ways!

 I really liked Yana's latest release, in particular her Floral Celebration bundle, a Press Plate and a set of stencils to color it.

I don't yet own a BetterPress system, so I thought I'd get this plate and use it with glimmer hot foils just to try it, and I was thrilled with the results!  Here are 3 samples using it with its matching stencils, each with a different color of glimmer foil.

supplies: white cardstock, champagne gold metallic kraft, Floral Celebration plate, Champagne glimmer foil, Floral Celebration stencils, inks in pinks, yellow, orange, and greens, Thanks Enclosed sentiment die

After foiling and coloring the panel, I sliced it about 2/3 of the way down, then lined the bottom and top of the resulting panels in a metallic champagne strip and adhered them to my card base to frame the sentiment die, cut from the same champagne metallic.

Next I foiled my panel using Cobalt Blue glimmer foil and colored it in cool colors, then just added a die-cut sentiment.

supplies: white cardstock, royal blue metallic cardstock, vellum, Floral Celebration bundle, Cobalt Blue glimmer foil, inks in blue, purple, and teals, Simon Happy Wishes dies

And finally, some soft pastel colors with Black glimmer foil, which is matte, and adding some interest with flower dies.

white, black, melon, Cotton Candy, Banana, and 2 green cardstocks, Floral Celebration bundle, Black glimmer foil, Four Scoops mini ink cubes, Club Blooms dies, (retired) sentiment from Simon's Happy Every Day 

After foiling and coloring this panel, I sliced it into 4 pieces and placed them onto a banana backing, then added some flowers and leaves to reflect the ink colors I used, and my sentiment.  This one may be my favorite.

I used Hammermill premium color copy cover white for all my starting points, and each of these foils came out perfectly, no overfoiling, no underfoiling!  I take that as my okay to try more of these beautifully detailed press plates!

Edited to add a 4th version; now I have a BetterPress system and wanted to use these supplies in the way they were intended, so here's 1 more card done that way, using the Betterpress ink on Tim Holtz Distress watercolor paper, then stencilled as above.

supplies: white and pink cardstock, vellum, Floral Celebration bundle, Betterpress black ink, PinkFresh Studio Fairy Dust and Rise and Shine, Altenew Lavender Fields, Firefly, Lime, and Fresh Leaf mini ink cubes, blending brushes, Simon Sending Smiles dies

I'll be honest and say that using the Betterpress System with this particular plate makes very little difference in the results.  You can feel the impression if you run your hand over the surface, but you can't really see any difference.  

Lilacs in a Jar

 One of the new dies released at the Greetery recently were the Botanicuts Lilacs, and because we were travelling back from Florida at the time, I wasn't able to get these until later in March, but they were SO worth the wait! 

Here's my first card using these dies, mixed with some older goodies from The Greetery.  I made a mini slim-line card.

supplies: white and kraft cardstock, white flocked cardstock, Honey Bee Giddy for Gingham dp, (retired) Spellbinders mini slimline scallop rectangle die, The Greetery Just Mason Around, Botanicuts Lilacs and Pussy Willows dies, shaded lilac, picked raspberry, seedless preserves, mowed lawn, and rustic wilderness distress inks, finger daubers, pale grey marker to shade pussy willows, Hero Arts Sending Love Mail sentiment

I colored and constructed the lilacs and pussy willows, then pulled out my Mason Jar stamp set, to find this already completed and cut-our jar!  I love how this turned out, and it was fun to make a mini slimline card again!  If this doesn't scream spring, I don't know what does!

Both of these Botanicuts sets are easy to put together - cut first, then leave the dies in their backing and color them with a variety of inks.  If you're a lilac girl like me, you HAVE to have them!

Thanks for coming by - enjoy your day!