Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Girls Night Out

 Have you all seen the latest Art Impressions Halloween sets??  I'm sharing the cute little flying witch from the Girls Night Out Set (Sku #4526):

When I saw this sweet little witch, I knew that I wanted to have her flying - so I made a circular die cut through the front of my card, and suspended her on a piece of thread in the opening:
 She's a little hard to photograph, since she likes to twirl around when the card is propped open!  So I've taken a few different shots so that you get the idea.  Below it shows the card laying flat so that you can see her a bit better.  I've also used the Funky Halloween (Sku# 4312) sentiment on the front of the card - and the inside sentiment is "Girls Night Out".
Forgive the photos!  The base is a vibrant lime green colour, not quite as neon as the photo shows on the blog!  I used my Gift Box Punch Board and a piece of 6x6" cardstock to create a tiny matching pumpkin to hold a few little chocolate goodies:

I started by assembling my card base mounting lime green on the front, and a warm yellow on the inside.  I cut a 3" circle through the entire front.  I coloured the witch with Copic markers and fussy cut around her.  I cut a black shape with my Cricut, and glued a piece of thread onto the back:
I ran a line of glue down the back of the witch and placed her under the thread before gluing the die cut onto the front of my card.
You can see all of the Ai 2014 Halloween sets here!  Happy Stamping Everyone!
Copics used: C7, C5, C3, C1, C00, YR15, YR12, YR00, YG05, YG03, YG01, V09, V04, V01, Y26, Y23, Y21, E57, E55, E53.

 


Monday, September 29, 2014

Coffee Lovers Blog Hop & Creative Bloggers Hop

Happy Monday everyone!  This is a big post today, so bear with me - I am participating in the Coffee Lover's Blog Hop, and at the end of the post, I am answering a few crafty questions to participate in the Creative Bloggers Hop.  When I first heard about the Coffee Lover's Blog Hop initiated by Chaitali, I knew that I wanted to take part by making a card, but when I got set up in my craft room, I decided to make a set of four...
I pulled out October Afternoon's Farmhouse papers, three Verve sets (Coffee, Notepaper & Better With You) and three Verve dies!  I also managed to use four different sketches, so here they are:

This is the Viva La Verve Sept. Week 4 sketch
 

This is the Viva La Verve Sept Week 2 sketch
 

 

This is the sketch from The Challenge #15
I had a great time making this little set... I just may have to make some kind of a holder for them when I get a chance.  And isn't that little coffee word die wonderful?  It just may be the best die ever created (thanks, Julee!)  Be sure to head over to Chaitali's blog to see the entire hop list, and if you can create a coffee themed creation today, you can link it up, too.
 
And now for the Creative Blogger Nomination!
Creative Blogger is a chain of blog hop tours.  You will get to meet new bloggers, gather loads of inspiration, and connect with blogs that will expand your creativity.  I have four questions to answer, and then I will pass along my nomination.  But first - I need to thank the incredibly talented Brenda Rose for asking me to join the hop!  I'm a little humbled by her nomination, as she is one of the most inspirational people that I know - there is a link to her Rose Blossom Legacies blog on my sidebar - you'll want to head over and start pinning all her fabulous creations :o)  Here goes:

What am I currently working on?
My two design teams keep me pretty busy all the time both colouring & cardmaking.  I have four projects due this week (and I took time out this weekend to make my four coffee cards!), so even though almost everything is completed, I'm in the middle of getting it all photographed and preparing blog posts.  I also colour ahead whenever possible, so I have about 10-15 images coloured and ready to go.  Another creative hobby of mine is photography... and the fall colours are in full swing in Ontario, so I've been taking a lot of photos this week, and have a photo shoot field trip with a girlfriend this week!

How does my work differ from others in it's genre?
I wouldn't say that I have a really unique look, as there are just so many talented people out there!  My style leans towards bold & bright colours, lots of patterned paper but fairly clean lines.  I don't use a lot of embellishments, often just a button or a few pearls.  I try hard to create cards that are well balanced using colours & papers that work well together.

Why do I create what I do?
A little creating time makes my world go 'round.  It really does.  In fact I probably 'need' more creative time than the average person!  Since I was a little girl making clothes for my trolls & Barbies... I have done embroidery, needlepoint, smocking, sewing, painting, knitting, scrapbooking, cardmaking and variations on all of the above.  I considered becoming an accountant, but no - I became a clothing designer!  Ha!  Creativity is an important part of everyone's life - whether you're baking, gardening or cardmaking - you should find what makes your own world go 'round, and do it!

How does my creative process work?
I love sketch challenges.  A well designed sketch will inspire me to head into my craft room and start picking out papers.  Then, based on the elements of the sketch - I'll determine what stamp set I plan to use.  If there is a large square or rectangle shape - I'll reach for a large image to fill it.  If there is a long and skinny piece, I'll look instead for a quote or sentiment that fits on it.  When I'm working on a design team project - my process is completely different!  Because now I am working with a specific stamped image, so that is where I start.  Then I select my papers that I'll be using, and I bring those over to where I colour with my Copics.  I'm almost obsessive about colouring my images to coordinate with the papers that I've chosen.  After the image is coloured, I'll head to my drafting table to design the card.  My absolute favourite thing to do is to create a grouping of coordinating cards (like my coffee cards above!) - mixing and matching papers and images to make a set of different cards that work well together.  I know this is a direct result of my background, making seasonal clothing lines that coordinate - it's simply the way that my brain works.  Another thing that I do - is to draw out absolutely everything!  At any given time, my drafting table is covered with dozens of tiny little sketches - I draw out all my cards (and occassionally scrapbook pages) in miniature before starting to cut papers so that I know if the card is well balanced or not.

Enough about me!  Now I'd like to extend the Creative Blogger Nomination to Amy Moore!  You can see her blog hereI've followed Amy's work for years - she is one talented lady with a real design flair!  And she can really rock a sketch challenge :o)

If you made it all the way through this post - thank you.  And Happy National Coffee Day.

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Witch Wanda in Greyscale

Halloween is just a few weeks away... so I am sharing an Art Impressions stamp called Witch Wanda today.  I've coloured her all in 'greyscale' using just the warm grey Copic markers, which gives her a bit of a creepy/vintage look!
 
I've used a cream cardstock - but she looks even creepier on white!  Give it a try - it's kind of like colouring a black & white photo?
Lora has some wonderful Halloween papers in the One Crazy Stamper store, whether you're making cards, crafts or scrapbooking.  And here's a tip: when you're on the homepage of the OCS online store, click on "New Items" on the sidebar - and it will show you all the items that have just arrived in the store!  With the holidays coming up, you're going to want the latest & greatest products asap!
Memory Box Grove Branch die
Happy Stamping!

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

A Cute Little Blowfish

 I am sharing one of the most recent Art Impressions Zoo Crew images today: Deep Breath Birthday (Sku #4471).  This is a great image to colour & shade, as you want to make him look as spherical as possible!  I kept the colours bright & fun:

Don't forget that there is still time to link up your creation to our Orange/Black/Purple challenge on the Ai blog!  There are always wonderful prizes to be won :o)
Copics used: Blues - BG09, BG07, BG05, BG02, BG01
Greens - YG67, YG63, YG01
Oranges - YR16, YR15, YR12, YR00
Pinks - R37, R35, R32, R30
Browns - E57, E55, E53, E51



Thursday, September 18, 2014

New Art Impressions Halloween!

The Art Impressions Design Team are all sharing projects made with the brand new Halloween 2014 images that are now available in the Ai store.  This is also week 2 of our Orange, Black & Purple challenge, so you'll want to head over to the Ai blog to link up your creation, and see what the rest of the Design Team has to share.  I'm using the fun Punkin Pie set (Sku #4520):
Patterned papers are Frightful, MME; Cardstock is Black & Colonial White, CTMH; Ink is Memento, Tuxedo Black; Stamp set is Punkin Pie (Sku #4520); Tilda Swirl die, Memory Box; Banner die, Verve; Icicle border die, MFT.
Copics used: E11, E00, E000, R20, R22, G93, G91, YR18, YR16, YR15, YR12, V9, V5, V1, C5, C3, C1.

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Christmas Tots on the Go

I have a Christmas card to share today, using one of the Art Impressions Jingle Tots stamps: Christmas Tots on the Go (Sku #3606).  I think this is the third Jingle Tots card that I've made using these papers - colouring all these cute little people in bright colours just makes me happy!  I'll try to dig out photos of the others and will add them to the bottom of this post :o)
The sentiment is Warm Your Heart (Sku #4169)


Copics used: Skin - E11, E00, E000, R20; Greens - G46, G43, G40; Blues - B02, B01, B00, B000, B0000; Greys - C5, C3, C1, C00; Pinks - R85, R83, R81; Fuchsias - RV25, RV15, RV14, RV13; Golds - Y26, Y23, Y21; Lavenders - BV22, BV20; Browns - Y57, Y55, Y53
Here are the other cards I've made:



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Friday, September 12, 2014

Santa & Mrs. Minis

 
I wanted to share a few more cards using the newly released Art Impressions Mini Front & Backs.  Here is the Santa & Mrs. Mini Set (Sku#4506):
These little guys are just the sweetest images!  And they colour up in a jiffy...




You can find all four of the new sets here in the Ai store.
Copics: E11, E00, E000, R59, R27, R24, R22, R20, G46, G43, G40, C1, C3, C5, Y26, Y23, Y21
Happy stamping!

 

Thursday, September 11, 2014

Viva La Verve - Cupcakes

It's a pretty happy day when you open your mailbox and find a little package from Verve sitting there :o)  So I bustled home and made this sweet little cupcake card using my new goodies.  I am playing along with the September Viva La Verve week 1 sketch and colour challenge, as well as the Verve blog's Diva Inspiration challenge which is to make something sweet & sugary.
 
Patterned papers are Cakewalk, October Afternoon; Stamp set is Cupcakes, Verve; Inks are Chocolate & Blush, CTMH; Cardstock is Kraft & Colonial White, CTMH; Pastel Sequin Mix, Verve; Twine is American Crafts.

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Mojo & The Challenge

I've combined a couple of challenges today, using the sketch from Mojo Monday, and just the colour combo from The Challenge (although I do love Lesley's sketch, so I may be back to play again!)  The colour combo made me think Christmas, and I have the perfect Verve set that fits nicely into that vertical panel:
I was able to make two of these to add to my growing holiday card pile :o)
Patterned papers are Snowhaven; Ink is Slate; Silver Glitter paper; Kraft, White Daisy & Glacier cardstock - all Close To My Heart; Stamp set is Peace on Earth, Verve; Snowflake dies, My Favorite Things.
 

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Jolly Snowman cards

 Once we're past Labour Day in my house, it's officially "Holiday Cardmaking Season"!  I have a small stash already, as I make them year 'round whenever I can... but I tend to step things up a little in September and start to actively tackle my Christmas cards.  With that in mind, I brought out Art Impression's Jolly Snowman Set (Sku #4315) and made two slightly different versions of the same card:



The papers have kind of a 50's muted look to them, so I kept the colouring a bit muted, mounted him on matte gold cardstock, and sprinkled on a few matte sequins.
Copics: Golds - Y28, Y26, Y23, Y21
Greys - W9, W7, W5, W3, W1, W00
Greens - G46, G43, G40, YG97, YG95, YG93, YG91
Reds - R27, R24, R22, R20
Nose - YR15, YR12


Sunday, September 7, 2014

Sweet Sunday Sketch #235

I haven't played with the Sweet Sunday Sketch in a little while, but I just received some new Close To My Heart goodies, so I pulled them out to play along:
Patterned papers are Pathfinding; Cardstock is Chocolate, Glacier & Colonial White; Stamp set is You Mean the World to Me, Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge - all Close To My Heart.  Gumdrops by Your Next Embellie; Ink is Rich Cocoa, Memento;  Banner Bundle die, Verve.
 

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