Saturday, June 30, 2012

"Clearly" Amazing Blog Hop!


We are super excited about the fun we’re having with the folks from ClearScraps and the generous people at Tsukineko who supported our blog collaboration this week. Loving how the acrylic surfaces really lend themselves to being used with so many different ribbons, patterned papers, and, of course, stamps, stickers, and other products from Stampendous! Too much fun!


And, naturally, a huge Prize Package doesn’t hurt! You could win a fantastic load of swag just for commenting on these terrific creations! Remember that the folks over at the ClearScraps Blog have more prizes as well!! There are three ways to win our goodies! Comment on the blogs all week and we’ll enter you once for every comment! Then:
  • Go to our Stampendous Facebook Page.
  • Find the post for this Blog Hop Collaboration – It should be “pinned” as the first post on our page.
  • Click on SHARE below the post (it’s probably in blue)
  • A little box will pop up – choose On Your Wall
  • Bam – you’re entered! (PS… chances are in your favor… no one shared Monday’s post!)
Here is my creation for today's huge hop:


Using the base of the Clear Scraps "Sassy" 8 X 8 album, which is a mix of clear acrylic and chipboard pages, with a unique layer of pages and edges, a batch of Tsukineko inks, and of course, a slew of Stampendous images and goodies, I went to town on this project. I have to admit, I worked on this for several days, but I enjoyed every minute of it.

I knew that I wanted to use several pictures of darling Emily, the daughter of friends, who has pictures taken of her pretty much 24/7! And Mum (yes, she's British) does a fabulous job of photographing her daughter. I've teasingly asked her if Emily recognizes her without a camera in front of her face. But, who wouldn't want to photograph this child?

Anyway, I changed all of the pics to grayscale, and added only pink Copic coloring to tint them. I adhered her photos on mostly the chipboard pages, but made sure that she could be seen through the decorated acrylic pages. These pages start out with a protective film over them that needs to be removed before decorating them.


For the front clear page, I daubed Tsukineko's Cotton White StazOn over the back, leaving a portion blank for the photo on page two to show through. Then I stamped the Cling Blossom Spray image randomly over the front and back using the Black StazOn ink. StazOn is the perfect ink for stamping on non-porous surfaces like acrylic and acetate. Using various shades of aqua/teal and pinks, I carefully colored the back of the designs with my Copic markers. I stamped the Perfectly Clear Amore Frame as well as a title using the Altered Type Alphabet, and colored this as well. To make this framed area pop out, I painted behind it with aqua acrylic paint.


The second page is chipboard and was covered with a soft aqua paper stamped with the Cling Garden Background using Tsukineko's Turquoise Gem VersaMagic chalk ink. I stamped with VersaMark a few Butterfly Beauties over the page, and embossed them with Aged Rose Embossing Enamel. The edges and back of this page were painted with pink acrylic paint, and "white washed" with the Cotton White StazOn pad. A little ink distressing was added to the sanded edges with Angel Pink Memento. Small pockets were adhered for "Tiny Treasures".


Page three is clear once again, with a rounded edge. This time I chose to show off how pretty it is to stamp with the Cotton White on the clear for an etched appearance. Using the flexibility of the Perfectly Clear Elegant Borders, I was able to curve the border to match the curve of the page. Cool, huh? A few adhesive pink pearls highlights this as well. I stamped the Cling Daffodil Girl on tissue paper with Tuxedo Black Memento ink, and colored her from behind with Copic markers. I adhered her to the back of the clear page by brush-applying Beacon Fast Finish Decoupage on the page, placing the tissue piece on top, and brushing more over this. Then I applied an even coating of Multi Crystal glitter...amazingly this sparkle shows through the translucent tissue from the opposite side as well!


Page four shows through page three, with darling Emily in her pink tutu, sitting near her garden fairy. I embossed the Perfectly Clear Vintage Frames over this pic using Aged Rose EE once again. All of this on a soft pink polka-dotted paper adhered to the chipboard page. The edges and the back of this page have been painted in aqua and "white washed" using the Cotton White StazOn pad once again. The back of page four also has a fun pocket for "Mum's Memories".


Page 5 is another clear page. I stamped the Perfectly Clear Elegant Borders and Butterfly Beauties around the edge, and a frame in the center with the Cotton White StazOn. I daubed aqua acrylic paint behind the center frame to highlight it. Since I wanted to adhere another pic from behind, I also added a distressed pink panel die cut to be several inches smaller than the page. This allows my stamped Elegant Borders and Butterfly Beauties to show off that etched look once again. For extra textural interest, I adhered a swirly design of Rose Color Fragments over the surface using Glossy Accents.

I finished up the album by inserting three "C" rings from the hardware store. These have small holes at each end which after inserting through the pages, I was able to tie off with ribbons. One jumbo scrumptious aqua ribbon bow from May Arts, along with some pink paper roses, completes the vintage garden feel that I was going for.


I realize that my post today was quite long-winded, and I totally understand if you want to leave your comment, and move on to the next in line of this fun hop, but I do hope you'll come back with your cup of tea in hand, and a couple cookies, and read through the details. Just don't leave any crumbs behind! Here are the players for the hop today:



Friday, June 29, 2012

Woodware UK: Memories in Metal


My Woodware UK post is making me feel sentimental this week. I'm remembering how much fun I had in the UK in February when I had the wonderful opportunity to travel over with Lynell Harlow of Dreamweaver Stencils. We were there to teach some projects and demonstrate new product and techniques at the "Stitches" show in Birmingham. What a treat to visit a show dedicated to all things crafty in the UK, and to be with, and make great friends along the way!

One of the items we were demonstrating was the Mercart metals which come in a wide variety of colored aluminum...silver on one side, and a color on the opposite. I chose black for my Thistle design here. Mercart also provides a wide variety of tools for working the metal and adding your unique touch to your artistic endeavors.

Embossing on metal can be as simple or as involved as you want to make it. This one was fairly involved as I was working on it occasionally over a few days. I started by placing the metal piece color side down on top of the stencil design (Long Thistle), adding a small piece of removable tape to hold in place. Then you use a large paper "stump" (available at most art supply stores), rubbing over the surface to get the general impression of the design. Now you can switch over to the Teflon tool to add more precise delineation to the design, and if desired, you can use the large ball end tool to really push the metal as far as it will go. You can also use the fine tip of the Teflon tool to delineate the design on the opposite side (without the stencil in place). I used another tool to add the tiny, swirly design in the background for more texture, and one of the design wheels to finish off the edge all the way around.

When you have just the amount of embossing that you want, you can use a sanding block to remove the color from the raised surface, or you can use a cotton swab (Q-Tip) to remove color with the Color Solutions Blender/Cleaner. When dry, you can use Ranger Cut and Dry Pen Nibs to apply Color Solutions to the plain areas. I used Citron and Sugarplum for my punches of color.

To finish my card, I ran the white cardstock through the embossing machine with the Stripes stencil for a soft embossed texture, a border punched from the Woodware Craft Collection's Crafty Edger. This is a fabulous gadget! A huge variety of great design borders in cartridge form can be purchased to go with, for infinite possibilities.

For more ideas on working with the Mercart metals, visit the Woodware UK blog, and click on the sidebar for all the wonderful posts from this past week!

Remember, in the UK, these products can be purchased through any of the stores listed on the Woodware UK website HERE.

In the USA, most of these products can be purchased through stores that carry Dreamweaver and Mercart products, or through the Stencil with Style site.



Thursday, June 28, 2012

Sparkling Under the Sea


 AND


ARE TEAMING UP THE ENTIRE MONTH OF JUNE TO BRING YOU AN AMAZING CREATIVE COLLABORATION MIXING DREAMWEAVER STENCILS AND ART GLITTER. COME ALONG FOR THE RIDE...WE PROMISE IT WILL BE A SPARKLING ONE!

Visit the Art Glitter blog and the Dream It Up! blog for fabulous inspiration from both talented design teams. We are encouraging all of you to play along with the challenge of creating with Dreamweaver Stencils and Art Glitter*, preferably using the Double-Glitter Technique with a wedding theme. Just link your creation to the Mr. Linky on the Dream It Up! blog, or email pics to lynell@dreamweaverstencils.com, for an opportunity to win one of four fabulous glitter and stencil prize packages. One winner will be chosen each week. (US and Canada only, please).



Here is my post for today:


For this week, I'm sparkling under the sea! I used the double glitter technique with the Seahorse stencil, using the tip of a straw to carefully place the colors of Art Glitter from my Carnival Pee Wee kit. The background was covered in transparent crystal glitter. When the panel was finished, I went back and added some shading with my Copic markers. Because of their transparent color, they don't detract from the sparkle of this fabulous glitter.

I created a border by hand-embossing the Scallop stencil across the white strip. To highlight the embossing further, I shaded slightly with a Copic BG0000. I punched two EK edger borders, covered them with white glue, and poured a gorgeous covering of Teal and Sand Ultrafine Art Glitter. For more info on the Double-Glitter Technique, Lynell Harlow demonstrates this technique for the Scrapbook Soup episode HERE.

Remember to play along with us. Break out your glitter and stencils and create something sparkly for this month's challenge. Link it to the Dream It Up! blog Mr. Linky HERE, or email pics to lynell@dreamweaverstencils.com. There are still TWO more prize packages available, and you know you want one!

For more inspiration from the Art Glitter design team, please visit their blog for a complete list of players throughout the month.

For more inspiration from the Dream Team, here's the blog list for this week:


*For the month of June Art Glitter is selling 1 oz jars of glitter for $5.98 (regular price $7.32)! Get the deets HERE!





Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Stampendous, Clear Scraps, and Tsukineko..."Clearly" a Fun Mix!


Stampendous, Clear Scraps, and Tsukineko are doing a collaborative week which started yesterday, June 25th, through Saturday, June 30th...which also happens to be a huge hop extravaganza including all of the Stampendous teams. Those that visit the Stampendous blog, as well as the hop blogs on Saturday, and leave comments, will be entered to win one of THREE prize packages similar to the one shown above.

Today also happens to be my day at the Paper Craft Planet to do the 3D Tuesday Tutorial, so I thought I'd use my Stampendous/Clear Scraps creation for this project. I have frequently looked at the Clear Scraps line of clear acrylic craft supplies...scrapbooks, cards, plaques, etc., but never could quite figure out what to do with them. This week was my opportunity to finally play with these. Each of the Stampendous team members were provided a Clear Scraps Album, a Send It Clear card set, and lots of Tsukineko goodies to use in conjunction with all of it.



Obviously, the uniquely clear quality needs to be emphasized in the design work. The StazOn  and StazOn Opaque inks are designed to use on non-porous surfaces, so will not smear or smudge once stamped on the acrylic.

I took my Clear Scraps Scallop Send It Clear kit, and after removing the protective film covering the front and back of all pieces, I stamped borders using the Tsukineko Powder Blue StazOn Opaque ink on the center panel, along with a few hearts from the Stampendous Wonderland set on both side panels. I adhered the photo of cute little Emily to the back of the center panel with Photo Mount adhesive spray, and added the titling to that panel with the Perfectly Clear Altered Typewriter Alphabet using the Black StazOn.

For the side panels, I stamped Alice and the March Hare on tissue in Tuxedo Black Memento ink,  colored with markers, and cut them out. Then I brush-applied Beacon Fast Finish to the back of the panels, carefully placed the colored tissue pieces on the surface, and brushed more over the pieces. Once dry, I sprayed adhesive on the front and back of each, and poured Stampendous Ultra Fine Multi Crystal Glitter over the tacky surface. The result is gorgeous sparkle, and yet still translucent.

There are clear round stickers that are provided for adhering your panels to the center panel, enabling them to swing open and closed. I adhered the center panel to a created tent card with foam adhesive, and added a luscious May Arts bow to be tied over the closed creation, or tied at the base when displayed open.


If you'd like to see the step-by-step tutorial of this project, please go to THIS link at Paper Craft Planet. For more "clearly" different creations, here are today's players:

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Still Feeling the Love of Sparkle


 AND


ARE TEAMING UP THE ENTIRE MONTH OF JUNE TO BRING YOU AN AMAZING CREATIVE COLLABORATION MIXING DREAMWEAVER STENCILS AND ART GLITTER. COME ALONG FOR THE RIDE...WE PROMISE IT WILL BE A SPARKLING ONE!

Visit the Art Glitter blog and the Dream It Up! blog for fabulous inspiration from both talented design teams. We are encouraging all of you to play along with the challenge of creating with Dreamweaver Stencils and Art Glitter*, preferably using the Double-Glitter Technique with a wedding theme. Just link your creation to the Mr. Linky on the Dream It Up! blog, or email pics to lynell@dreamweaverstencils.com, for an opportunity to win one of four fabulous glitter and stencil prize packages. One winner will be chosen each week. (US and Canada only, please).



Here is my post for today:


Still celebrating the magic of wedding with plenty of sparkle, my card today features the appropriately named, "Love Birds" stencil, done with the Double Glitter technique which is so ably demonstrated by Lynell Harlow in her Scrapbook Soup episode HERE.

My card follows the same process, using the Midnight Opaque Ultra Fine from Art Glitter for the Love Birds, and the background being filled with Silver Opaque Ultra Fine.

The completed panel was matted and adhered to a navy blue card, along with a white cardstock panel that had been mist-stenciled with Memories Mists Silver through the Damask stencil.

The long "Bless You" sentiment was simply machine-embossed with my Big Shot on metallic silver cardstock. Embellishments were the deep blue rhinestone stickers, a fluffy sheer white bow, and one of the Dreamweaver 3" pearl corsage pins. The end result is formally elegant with a touch of whimsey.

 For more inspiration from the Art Glitter design team, please visit their blog for a complete list of players throughout the month.

For more inspiration from the Dream Team, here's the blog list for this week:


*For the month of June Art Glitter is selling 1 oz jars of glitter for $5.98 (regular price $7.32)! Get the deets HERE!




Wednesday, June 20, 2012

It's Officially SUMMERTIME!

Technically, it's summer now! What better way to celebrate than with a beachy card. You know you want to park your self in the center of this card, feel the sand between your toes, read a good book, and drink something cool, frothy, and fruity...with or without alcohol!

For this card, I used the Stampendous Cling Beachfront Boat, stamped in Tuxedo Black Memento, and colored with Copic markers. I used the tip of the "Blender" marker to add some movement to the water. The colored panel is popped up over a second stamping on the card base, a wavy border, beachball striped paper from American Crafts, and a fun sentiment complete the summery look.

The Stampendous teams are all playing along during the month of June with our "Summer Theme", so come play along with us. Don't forget, we want YOU to play along with us!  Simply make a summer themed project of some sort and add the direct link for your project to our collection at the end of this post (or on the Stampendous blog) no later than Thursday, June 28 at 11:59 PM EST .  You do not have to use Stampendous products, but we sure love it when you do!  As an extra incentive for playing along, one lucky crafter (drawn at random) will receive this fabulous new Friendly Phrases Perfectly Clear stamp set:


As an even bigger incentive, if you use Stampendous products on your project, that entry will count twice, which increases your chances of winning!  Due to shipping restrictions, the winner must have a US address.  We hope you have a chance to play along with us (you an enter as many times as you'd like!) this month...Happy Crafting!

Pin It





Sunday, June 17, 2012

Woodware UK: Positively Regal with Purple and Gold

I'm kicking off the week for the Woodware UK team challenge of using a purple and gold colorway, by posting one of my absolute favorite cards that I've ever created.

This card features the Stampendous Cling Baroque Bouquet image stamped on Bazzill Dotted Swiss cardstock using purple ink. The image was stamped again on scrap pieces, and the flowers were cut out and adhered to the original image on the card, along with some matching paper roses, and an intertwining of May Arts leaf trim. I added a few crystals to the flower centers in a matching green.


Slits were added along the sides of the bouquet to lace and tie a yummy purple ribbon (also May Arts). If that weren't regal enough, I added a stamped with Versamark and gold embossed Stampendous Perfectly Clear Vintage Crown on purple cardstock, at the base, curved and held in place with gold brad fasteners for more dimension. A little distressing with the ink pad direct-to-paper finished this off.

Not a bad start to this regal week with the Woodware UK team. Be sure to check their blog daily to be inspired by the rest of the team!

If you are in the UK, you can purchase these products through the stores listed on the Woodware site HERE.

If you are in the USA, you can purchase the Stampendous images through their website HERE.




Thursday, June 14, 2012

Taking Double Glitter for GRANITE!


 AND


ARE TEAMING UP THE ENTIRE MONTH OF JUNE TO BRING YOU AN AMAZING CREATIVE COLLABORATION MIXING DREAMWEAVER STENCILS AND ART GLITTER. COME ALONG FOR THE RIDE...WE PROMISE IT WILL BE A SPARKLING ONE!

Visit the Art Glitter blog and the Dream It Up! blog for fabulous inspiration from both talented design teams. We are encouraging all of you to play along with the challenge of creating with Dreamweaver Stencils and Art Glitter*, preferably using the Double-Glitter Technique with a wedding theme. Just link your creation to the Mr. Linky on the Dream It Up! blog, or email pics to lynell@dreamweaverstencils.com, for an opportunity to win one of four fabulous glitter and stencil prize packages. One winner will be chosen each week. (US and Canada only, please).

 
Here is my post for today:

I read somewhere recently that hexagons are the "in" shape right now, which made me look at the Dreamweaver Hexagons stencil in a whole new light. To go with the more modern look I had in mind, I applied the bright colors from the Art Glitter Carnival Pee Wee kit with the tip of a diagonally cut drinking straw. The rest of the hexagons were filled in with Pearl Ultrafine. I added some extra shading to the bright glittered areas with Fluorescent Copic markers.

Now, here is where life got a little interesting. I fully intended to have the white Pearl portions remain very white, so I carefully rubbed in the Pearl glitter thoroughly for the best coverage. Then I carefully removed the panel from the stencil (which, yes, I remembered to soap before placing on the adhesive). I poured the Black Ultrafine over the line portion, and rubbed in thoroughly, and...um, yeah, you guessed it...a lot of the black became embedded in the Pearl white background.

However, the more I looked at it, the more I liked the granite-look speckled gray appearance of the background. I love the pop of bright colors off of gray, and this worked in just that way. Sometimes mistakes are just a new way to look at your art...and your life.

For more inspiration from the Art Glitter design team, please visit their blog for a complete list of players throughout the month.

For more inspiration from the Dream Team, here's the blog list for this week:


*For the month of June Art Glitter is selling 1 oz jars of glitter for $5.98 (regular price $7.32)! Get the deets HERE!