Squeeze the day

Good day everyone! You think spring is here and then wham!! Winter rears its ugly head!  But that doesn't matter because every day is time to "squeeze the day!". 

Today starts a new challenge at Inky Paws. A color challenge. Pistachio green, golden yellow, navy blue, and white.

 

 My card today feature's "Lemon Twist" by Newton's Nook. I used a cool technique fro Yana Smakula for copic coloring on dark paper.

You have two weeks to get a share your color inspiration with us at Inky Paws. We will chose a RANDOM entry to win a $20.00 Newton's Nook store gift certificate. Our favorite entries from each challenge will be highlighted the following Monday, so all entries have a chance to be featured on the blog.
The deadline to enter today's challenge is  Friday April 8, 2021 at MN CST. The winners will be announced on the following Monday at  Inky Paws.

Fly by

 

I have said this before, I love making Halloween cards. I actually end up making more than I send out. Anyone want a Halloween card- just let me know, I am sure I will have a few to spare! 

 

For my card today I am using this month's featured color at The Rainbow Card Challenge. Smokey slate. Very creepy, foreboding, and  eerie. 

Today's card features a really cool technique that Kristina Werner showed on her blog in early August. I fell in love with this technique and it was perfect for my spooky card.

 I challenge you guys to try this out. You won't be disappointed in the results.

Believe it or not, I have your musical inspiration. Who would have thought there would be a song with "Slate" in the title. There is and here it is to inspire you!

You have the whole month of October to put together your spooky and smokey slate card for The Rainbow Card Challenge. Go for a Halloween card. It will take the guess work out of it!!

Skeletons in the closet

 It's been quite awhile since I have posted. Life has just been too busy. I am sure you can all relate. I had a few days with nothing going on so I got into my studio to play. I haven't spent aday experimenting and getting inky in years. I had an idea in mind from a card that I saw on Pinterest that I forgot to pin (of course). Anyway it was with using an acrylic block to stamp a watercolor background with.

I started out by using distress inks, but the colors were just not vibrant enough. I then decided to sprinkle some color burst powders on the block and heavily spritz the block. Sure enough, I got just the vibrancy I was looking for. Messy but well worth it.

It just so happened that Just Us Girls was having a challenge using acrylic blocks to stamp with.
Naturally, I had to enter.

I haven't done this kind of artsy fartsy stamping  forever. I tend to be CAS these days. But who knew- you can be artsy and CAS, don't you think?

 I would like to say, you will hear from me again soon, but don't hold your breath. School, work, families and holidays are all conspiring to steal my time.

So until another time, happy creating!!

CASing Sandy

I came across this video from Sandy Allnock sometime after Christmas and the bright colors on her cards really intrigued me.

I watched it and immediately had to play. I pulled out my color burst powders and created my own bright backgrounds.

I decided these warm reds would make a perfect Valentine card. I won't describe the process, please watch the video.

CAS on Sunday is challenging us to use hearts in our work, so I am entering this. card.

Try your hand at this awesome technique and play along at CAS on Sunday!

The Male Room Challenge # 33 Triple Stamping

Happy Sunday everyone. I am looking at a bright sunny day after a very weird day of fat snow yesterday. It snowed all day long and it just coated the ground. we had thick fat snow that looked like feathers floating.

Last weekend I spent in the Pocono mountains in Pennsylvania with a few girlfriends. We went for the Allentown Heirloom Rubber Stamp Convention but it really was just to spend quality time together stamping.

The weekend was the perfect opportunity for me to catch up on challenges. Today at the Male Room the new challenge is "triple stamping" I have to admit, I had no idea what this was until I googled it and saw it and thought "oh yeah I've seen that." You can google it and see a million videos or tutorials. Here is one from Split Coast.

So since I was in the road trip mood from traveling to the "No's", I went for a travel theme card.

The only problem with this card is the don't carry too much baggage. We are talking bringing stamping supplies- between 2 of us, the whole trunk was filled, leaving the back seat for clothes and food. Needless to say we pretty much spend the weekend in our jamis.

I can't wait to see what you all come up with this cool technique challenge at The Male Room!

House of Cards March Challenge- Silhouette

Singing birds.... green boughs.... fresh warm air..... yippee its spring, or at least it is almost spring! Its coming you can smell it in the air.

That's why this months challenge at House of Cards made me dig out a very old wood stamp (wood stamps?!!? some of you young pups probably aren't even sure what a wood stamp is!!) by Inkadinkadoo called branchful of birds.   

The theme this month is silhouette. Just think of everything you do.

I die cut a tag die from CAS-ual Friday and using my distress ink cubes, I just did a little DTP and swiped the ink across the tag.  I stamped the birds and embossed in black. Don't make the same mistake I made the first time, make sure the ink is well dry- even hit it with the heat tool before you stamp the birds or you will have black EP everywhere on your card!

 

I knew the card needed something, so I embossed the music folder and with the sentiment it added just the right touch.

Check out what the rest of the DT created this month and play along!

House of Cards November Technique Challenge

Hi everyone! It's November and that means a new challenge at House of Cards!! Mynn has shared a very cool video on a stamped and cut window technique. 

I am known for always stretching- who am I kidding!!-  I mean breaking the rules a bit. So I had to come up with a bit of a twist on the challenge. So I did a double cut and stamped window. I wonder how many cut and stamped windows could you create? Could it be like looking in two mirrors? it goes on for infinity?!!?

If you read yesterday's blog posting you know that my new fav stamp company is Reverse Confetti. I used the Pumpkin Patch set again for my challenge card.

I made my card with two background, the stripes:

I just wasn't sure so I tried it with a woodgrain background:

I was torn, but the stripes just keep whispering a wee bit louder. What do you think- stripes or woodgrain?

Please join us at House of Cards this month for this way fun and cool technique!

Hope

AAA Cards is having a fun duel challenge. It is all in the interpretation.

The theme is masquerade. You can either use a mask in your creation or mask something on your work. I don't have any mask stamps, so I decided to try my hand a masking. I wanted to do something a wee bit different. Recently, Papertrey Ink had a tutorial on masking sentiments and it reminded me of a technique I used last Christmas.

First I stamped the sentiment on removable tape and I cut closely around the sentiment. I placed it on my base card.

Next, using Penny Black's pretty petals I stamped over the sentiment mask.

I then gently removed the mask.

In the open space left by the mask I stamped the sentiment.

Lastly, I colored the image in with copic markers and added some glitter, because I like glittery things.

As I looked at this card I though this would be a lovely CAS sympathy card if using sympathy sentiments. 

Check out AAA Cards and lets see how you masquerade.

On a sad note, we had to put my sweet 18 year old girl Zephry to sleep last night. God bless her indomitable soul. She will be so missed.

 

House of Cards August Challenge- Metallics

Hi everyone! Today is a new challenge at The House of Cards. We are looking at using metallics in our creations. this is kinda a blast from the past for me. 

 

I went through my studio looking for something that would work. I came across this aluminum tape and remembered a long ago technique from Tim Holtz- before he was a household name in the stamping community.  

I don't really have a name for this technique, may be some of you will recognize it and let me know what to call it.

Here is a photo tutorial on how I created this shiny silvery card.

 

 I used a roll of aluminum tape and a piece of cardboard. ( the cardboard backing from a pack of StampinUp paper worked perfect!)

Using this set of dies from Julie Ebersole, I die cut several flowers and leaves. Depending on your die cutting machine you may need an extra shim. I have a Big Shot and still used an extra metallic shim.

Create a pleasing arrangement. Then apply some strips of double sided tape on the card and adhere the die cuts back on the card.

 

Lay the metallic tape over the die cuts on the card stock panel.

Apply a second strip of the tape so the die cuts are completely covered. Yes, I know you are going to say, "Sue T. there is a piece of the die showing." I know, I trimmed that section off to keep the strips of tape to two.

Using your finger go over the tape and press the tape down on the card base, so the image appears.

 

Using a ball tip stylus go back and really define the image.

 

 

Once that is all done I highlighted the flowers and leaves with Copic markers which will dry on the aluminum tape.

 

 

Just think of all the different dies you can use this technique with. I hope when you enter this months challenge at The House of Cards, I will see some of your creations using this old school technique.