New Front & Back

I have a very different card to share for this week's Watercolour Weekend on the Art Impressions blog - mostly dies!

I stamped the little 5780 - FB Sitting Dog onto some Bristol Smooth Cardstock using Tombows 565 & 969, and painted him with N55, adding layers where he needed to be darker.  I went over his features with my Black Twintone marker, then cut both the front and back out with the matching dies.  I did the same with the bird from 5261 - WC Large Birdhouse Set, painting him with 533 and fussy cutting him out.

To create the window, I cut the window frame from 5770 - FB Farm Fence Die Set in white cardstock - twice, and cut the shutters out in black.  It's a little hard to see in the photos, but I cut 1/2" strips of pale blue cardstock, and glued them all together to mimic the wood siding on a house.  I ran this panel through my machine with the 5063 A2 Rectangle Double Stitched Die, then cut out two black & white polka dot rectangles as well.  The black one was glued inside my card to be the 'inside' of the house, and the white polka dot piece was glued to the inside of the window.  Once I had created my layers for the front of my card, I used the rectangle die that cuts out the window, then glued the two window frames on the inside and outside of my card.

The pup was glued together and placed with his head sticking out the window to look up at the bird.  The dies that cut him out also cut out under his paws, which allowed me to let them perch on the windowsill.  I cut out my Memory Box Twig die in some kraft cardstock and glued it to my card so that there would be a good spot to have the bird standing on one of the branches.  The sentiment from 5734 - Friend Sentiments Set was stamped in Versafine Onyx Black ink.

Even though this is an easy card - it required a lot of planning!  You have to think before you glue things together, making sure you're not missing a step.  It's also important with a Front & Back card to have the inside look nicely finished - so I made sure to have some patterned paper on the reverse of the front panel to not have the dog sitting there on his own.

Check out the Ai blog and instagram on Saturday to see what Diane & Tricia have to share!

Stamptember with Art Impressions!

 I am excited to be participating in the launch of Art Impressions' collaboration with Simon Says Stamp to have this sweet stamp set as part of their Stamptember celebration!  Here is SSE23A Apple Cider Set:

I started by stamping her on masking paper and cardstock, cutting it out, and covering my stamped image with the mask.  I used Candied Apple, Squeezed Lemonade and Mowed Lawn Distress Oxide inks to blend my background - then sprinkled it with water, as well as white and grey paint to created a little background interest.  I removed the mask, and coloured up with Copic markers.  For her cute capris, I stamped them onto some Graphic 45 paper, fussy cut them out and adhered them to my base.  I cut the image out with my rectangular die, and added the sentiment with Versamark Onyx Black ink.  I raised the panel on foam adhesive before attaching it to my blue background, and added a few red enamel dots.

This set is only available through Simon Says Stamp - while quantities last!  And they usually go pretty quick, so head over to their site and grab yours now.  The set comes with two images, and four sentiments.  Great for fall birthdays or maybe even a teacher card?  The whole Ai team has cards to share, so check out the Ai blog for inspiration, as well as the SSS site.  

Blooming Floral

I am using a new-to-me stamp and stencil set today called Blooming Floral.  These are from Pigment Craft Company, a Canadian company who has such a unique style - that I recently purchased a number of new products of theirs.  The inks are also from Pigment Craft Co - love their colour palette!

The first of many projects you'll be seeing from me this fall using this company.  Jewels are from Pink Fresh Studio.  The decorative die is from The Greetery.  Happy crafting!

Harvest Gnome

I created a little harvest gnome scene for this week's Watercolour Weekend post on the Art Impressions blog, combining some new and older sets.

I stamped the sitting gnome from 5785 - Gnomes Set, inking up only the gnome, and not the pot he's leaning against - in Tombows #969/565.  I masked him off, and stamped the basket of produce from 5598 Harvest Set that was released last fall - positioning it as though he is leaning up against it, and also added one of the squirrels from 5599 Mini Mice & Squirrel set.  Creating the scene is the hardest part!

I painted the orange pumpkins in tones of #933/905/947, and the blue ones in #228/493/249, painting the large one on the ground in a mottled pattern.  The red apple and his hat are done in layers of #856, and the green one is #126/249.  The spaghetti squash on the ground is painted with #990/991.  For all of the produce, I kept the lightest layers on the top of each piece, as that is closest to the light source, and kept the undersides as the darkest, where the shadows are.  Darkening the crevices also makes each piece seem more 3 dimensional.  His nose and hand were painted in #850/903, his coat is in #993, and his shoes in shades of #977/969.  The basket and squirrel both have light, warm tones of #947, with darker brown shades of #977 & 969 painted where the darker areas are under the squirrel's tummy, and in between the slats of wood.  I used the small grass from 4051 Foliage Set in #126, and painted in out as a wash of grass, then added in darker shades of #177.  #493 was painted on his trousers, and as a wash for the sky.  I made all of the stumps to be tones of brown, and used #565 to add shadows around and under my images.

I added a few dots with my Navy Twintone marker, and cut out the scene with a decorative oval die.  Check out the Ai blog on Sept 2nd to see what Tricia & Diane have created!

Gnomes!

 I have a whimsical scene for this week's Watercolour Weekend post on the Art Impressions blog:

I stamped my sleeping gnome from 5785 Gnomes Set onto my Canson XL Watercolour Paper, masked him off, and stamped the stump from 4871 WC Rustic Container Set behind him.  I positioned the mushrooms from 5788 Whimsical Mushrooms on either side, and added the leaves from 5795 Berries in various spots.  Three different flowers from 5794 Whimsical Flowers were tucked in behind, and finally my little bee from 5561 - Birds and Bugs Set.  For all of my elements, I used Tombow Dual Brush Markers #969/565.

From my palette, I painted tones of brown (#947/969/899) onto the stump - the image shows you where the crevices are, so those areas are the darkest, while the more rounded areas catch more of the light, so they are the lightest.  For the toadstools and his hat, I started with #856, layering it to get darker tones, leaving the upper areas as the lightest shades.  The yellow toadstools and his shirt were painted with #991/993.  I wanted the leaves to be bright, so I started with #126, then mixed #249/493 to get a teal green shade for the darker areas.  #533/565 were painted on all the flowers - just as shadows on the white ones.  #526 was painted on his trousers, and #N55 on his shoes.  The bee was done with #N55/993 and a touch of blue on his wings.  The small grass from 4051 - Foliage Set 1 was stamped in #177, and painted out as a wash.  Finally a wash of #493 was painted in as the sky.  I added the sentiment from the Gnomes Set in Versafine Onyx Black ink, and added a few dots to my scene with my navy Twintone marker.  I cut out the scene with 5061 Square Double Stitched Dies, and mounted it onto my background paper.

Diane & Tricia will be sharing posts this week also.  Happy painting!

More Lawn Fawn Birthday die cards

 I was able to get 3 of these made up - using up patterned paper that is in my stash, and building up my Birthday card supply at the same time.

Altenew Dies

 I was lucky enough to win a gift card to the Altenew shop, so had fun picking out some new dies.  I'm using two of them on my card today, the Dotted Tile Debossing Cover Die is my background - love this!  The design is gorgeous and delicate - a perfect background.  The flower and leaves are all Craft-A-Flower: Rose, cut in various cardstock colours and layered together.  I added some gold paint spatters, plus a few pearls and a sentiment from Pinkfresh Studio.

Beach Cabin

I've used the new 5749 - SF Beach Cabin stamp for the Watercolour Weekend post on the Art Impressions blog, in a slightly different way today:

I wanted to do a horizontal scene with this stamp, instead of the up and down layout of it.  I began by colouring only the chair/umbrella/pots with my Tombow #969/565 and stamped it onto my Canson XL Watercolour paper.  Then I coloured up just the beach cabin, and positioned it slightly to the right of the chair.  With a pencil, I sketched in where the horizon would be, and added a mountain in the distance.  I used the 5120 - WC Palm Tree Set, with a combination of #126/346 on the different palm fronds to create several palm trees and some foliage in the foreground.  I used two of the stamps from 5009 - WC Mini Flower Set in #856 and #565 to add flowers to the pots and scattered around on the sand.  The chair was painted in #533, and the house and umbrella were done with #993, 933 and 856.  

A wash of #947 created the sand, #443/565 created the tropical water, and #493 was added to the sky.  Tones of #977/947 were painted on the mountain and tree trunk, with shading using #565.  Both my scene and the blue mat were cut out with the 5063 - Rectangle A2 Double Stitched Dies, and my scene was attached to the base with some 3D foam adhesive.

Be sure to check out the Ai blog on Saturday to see what Tricia and Diane have to share!

Folk Floral

 I've pulled out the lovely Folk Floral Stem stamp, stencil & die set again to pair up with my new Floral Lace background die to create a bunch of birthday cards.  Here are two of the designs that I created.  Inks and all other products are Pinkfresh Studio:

An Ai Cafe

I decided to paint a little Cafe scene for this week's Watercolour Weekend post on the Art Impressions blog.  This is the 5260 - WC Large ShopsSet:

I coloured my Shop with Tombows #969/565 and stamped it onto my Canson XL Watercolour Paper.  To set up my scene, I masked the edge of the building, and stamped the tree trunks from 5373 - WC Large Tree Set in #969, and added the foliage to it using the leafy stamp from 5372 - WC Mini Foliage in #177/126 - I like using two colours to make the leaves look more realistic.  I used a damp brush to soften the foliage, and painted in the trunks in #947 and 969, and added the same two colours to the door.  I used #526 for the building, and #993 on the roof, with a few streaks of #947 to suggest the shingles.  For the flower boxes, I used the two tiny florals in 5009 - WC Mini Flower Set, with #933 and #885, then tucked in the tiny foliage from the set in #126 around the flowers - everything was touched with a damp brush.  The awning was painted a paler shade of #526, and I added stripes in the Bleed-proof white paint.  The sign also had touches of #947 streaked on it to add a rustic look.

I sketched in the patio and walkway stones, then painted them in with #N55.  The tiny grass stamp from 5372 - WC Mini Foliage was used to add grass in #126 around the building, and then the colour was used to add a green wash as the grass.  #493 was washed in as the sky.  The Espresso sign and the table and chairs from 5265 - WC Wrought Iron Set were stamped in using #N55.  The image was cut out with one of the 5063 - Stitched A2 Rectangle Dies, then mounted onto the card base with 3D foam adhesive.

Be sure to check out the Ai blog on Saturday, to see what Tricia & Diane have created.

The Last Pies

 For now.  I have a feeling these will reappear this fall, when pumpkin pie season approaches.  This is the last trio of cards I made with the Spellbinder's Perfect Pies collection by Tina Smith.  Once again, I pulled out my October Afternoon papers to create this set that has a bit of a country fair feel.

Happy Birthday Queen B!!

 Our sneaky Art Impressions Design Team Coordinator has launched a challenge for all of the Ai fans to make a card for Bonnie's birthday, which just happens to be on July 10th.  Bonnie is affectionately called our "Queen B", and I've had this Bee die for a little while, so knew that I'd be using it on her card:

The leafy stencil die and bee are from The Greetery, and the font dies are Art Impressions.

If you'd like to join us in making her a card, you can find the challenge post on the Ai blog.  

Happy Birthday, Bonnie!  

And More Pies.

 My pie card obsession continues!  I made a whole bunch of these over the past couple of months, and have finally got them completed and photographed.  These are all created with the Spellbinder's Perfect Pies collection by Tina Smith.

October Afternoon papers are some of my all-time favourites, even though the company is long gone, so I pulled them out to create these, along with some Pinkfresh Studio dies.

Enjoy your pie :) 

Living Water

I've done a little masking today to put my scene together for the upcoming Watercolour Weekend post on the Art Impressions blog.

Using 5068 - Living Water Set, I positioned the bucket along with the geese from 4207 - Feather Friends on the same block, and stamped them onto my Canson XL Watercolour Paper using Tombows #969/565.  After masking them both, I used my stamp positioner to place the wishing well just behind them.  I pulled the colour out of the lines with a damp brush, using it to create the greys of the stones and rocks, and shadowing the wood and geese.  I used the Daisy Bunch from 5074 - Bible Flower Set and #565 as the flowers in the bucket, then stamped my greenery from 5126 - WC Foliage Set 4 on either side of the well in #126.  Tones of #992/977/969 were used for the bucket and wooden posts, to create an aged, weathered wood look, and #407 was painted on the roof and spindle.  With the medium sprig from 4867 - WC Foliage Set 2 New, and #177, the vine was stamped to be winding up the well onto the roof, and after dampening it with water, I went in a second time to add some darker branches.  The heart circle from 4868 - WC Flower Set 2 was stamped in clusters using #993 to add in the yellow flowers.  I used my #905 and 933 markers directly on the paper to colour in the beaks and feet of the geese.  *To make sure that the geese didn't fade into the background, I made sure that there was enough greenery behind them to give contrast to their white bodies. 

The small grass from 5073 - Bible Foliage Set was stamped repeatedly in #126 to add touches of grass around the scene, and a wash of the green extended the look of grass on the ground.  To finish up, I used Bleed Proof White ink to add white centers to my blue flowers, used #565 to add shadows on the well, the rock and around the geese - and finally, used my blue Twintone marker to add a few dots, and darken up some of the lines.  A wash of # 493 was painted in as the sky.