January 28, 2011

Amour Card and Video

When I made today's card I was totally focused on the upcoming Valentine holiday.  Then I decided that this card could also be given for a wedding, engagement congratulation or even an anniversary.     




If you would like to view a VIDEO with step-by-step instructions, click here.



In this photo you can see that the Amour band was created from two slits in the white cardstock base.

I hope you enjoy the video.

Thank you for viewing,
Elizabeth


Supplies:
Tsukineko:  Orchid Brilliance Pearlescent, Orange Brilliance Pearlescent, Tuxedo Black Memento, Lilac Posies Memento, Sparkle Sheer Shimmer Spritz, Sponge Daubers
Copic Markers
Other:  Crystal Gem


January 26, 2011

Be Mine Card & Box

Today I have a card and box that feature the same stamp.  These are older projects that I have not posted here that I thought you would enjoying looking at with Valentine's Day approaching. 

On each project I used Crimson Red VersaFine, Judi Kins Sticky Stuff embossing powder and red microfine glitter to make the bold sentiment extra sparkly. 




I "de-constructed" a small toothpaste box to use as a pattern for this mini treat holder.  An eyelet on the end makes a great  embellishment to hold a decorative ribbon.
Featured in Scrap & Stamp Arts (March 2010)

I would love to hear if you are making cards or boxes for the upcoming Valentine holiday.  I usually make boxes as I like to tuck a bit of chocolate inside.

Happily,
Elizabeth

January 24, 2011

For My Sweetheart

This is something I made last year for my husband.  This gift bag has lots of room to hold goodies for Valentine's Day, Sweetest Day or Just Because.  (I can't show this year's surprise or he will see it.) 



Published in Crafts 'n Things - February 2010
 The bag was created from a box that held tea.  I opened up the container to form an instant pattern and traced it onto colored cardstock.  There is a magnet snap under the flap to hold the lid closed.


This sentiment says it all!
I used more masculine colors for the design, but couldn't help adding a few hearts colored with a Stardust Gelly Roll pen.

Thanks for taking peek,
Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black: Clearly in Love 30-009, ...Everything 3931J, Pointille 3860J
Tsukineko: Tuxedo Black Memento, Rhubarb Stalk Memento, Rich Cocoa Memento, Crimson Red VersaFine
Sakura:  Stardust Gelly Roll Pen
American Crafts:  Ribbon
Making Memories:  Buckle
Basic Grey:  Magnetic Snap
Tombow:  Adhesive
Other:  Clear Embossing Powder

January 22, 2011

Thank You For Your Kindness

Happy Saturday!  I hope you are enjoying your weekend.

Today I have an appreciation gift.    


This sentiment from Penny Black (You Are Kind 3624F) is a couple of years old, but has remained one of my all-time favorites.  I love the combination of fonts.

The cellophane bag is a plastic envelope sleeve that was trimmed with decorative scissors.  The sentiment is matted with a scalloped rectangle Nestability and adorned with ribbon from American Crafts.

I added a crystal rhinestone in the exclamation point for an extra little sparkle.

I appreciate your kindness to visit so often.

Elizabeth 

January 20, 2011

Beautiful Bloom

My mother gave me this amaryllis bulb after Thanksgiving and it just bloomed!  



There are four large trumpet flowers; however, they are so big I could only fit two in the photograph.

It has been so cheery having this burst of color in the middle of January with all our snow.

Wishing all of you a bouquet of beauty today!



January 17, 2011

Thinking of You

Lately I have been thinking of spring and colorful flowers.........




The butterfly and flowers were colored with Tombow makers and USArtQuest interference paints.




After the images were trimmed, they were attached to the card with dimensional foam tape.

Hope your day is filled with lots of sunshine!

Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black:  Butterfly-Kissed 4121K, Go With Your Heart 40-043, Illuminations 30-048
Fiskars:  Border Punch
Tombow:  Markers
Sakura:  White Gel Pen
Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Pear Tart Memento Ink, VersaMark Watermark Ink
USArtQuest:  Pigmented Mica Watercolor Paint:  Interference Blue, Interference Gold
Other: Clear Embossing Powder

January 14, 2011

Go With Your Heart - An Experiment With Ink

Sometimes my art room becomes a lab.  Mixing and blending different inks and techniques can be as much fun for me as creating a card.  Even if the idea doesn't work out, I learn so much about how various inks and products interact with one another.  

This card contains one of my experiments.


I wanted to color the peacock in a quick, colorful way so I decided to blend these inkers on a non-stick craft sheet:  Pear Tart Memento, Summer Sky Memento, Artic Ice Opalite and Frost VersaMark.  A piece of watercolor paper was then pressed into the mixture.  A small amount of heat was applied before Bright Heart was stamped in Onyx Black VersaFine.  While the impression and colored paper were still damp, I sprinkled clear embossing powder over the top.  After tapping off the excess powder and heat setting, I "fussy cut" the image.

To compliment the shiny effect on the bird, I sprayed Gold Sheer Shimmer Spritz on the mat stamped with Paisley Swirls.

No two images were alike.  Depending on the amounts of each inker used and the colors combined, every mixture was a fun surprise!

Your time to visit is always appreciated.  

Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black:  Bright Heart 4125K, Go With Your Heart 40-043, Paisley Swirls 40-011
Tsukineko:  Onyx Black VersaFine, Rich Cocoa Memento, Pear Tart Memento Inker, Summer Sky Memento Inker, Artic Ice Opalite Inker, Frost VersaMark Inker, Lady Bug Memento Marker, Rhubarb Stalk Memento Marker, Gold Sheer Shimmer Spritz
Other: Clear Embossing Powder

January 12, 2011

A Trio of Monochromatic Cards

Here are a few more monochromatic card ideas with coordinating envelopes.  These were featured in Scrap & Stamp Arts in June 2010.

-Happy Birthday-
Penny Black: Mini Flutterby 3649C, Sentiments 30-025

The butterflies were colored with bleach then re-colored with a Sea Blue #373 Tombow marker.






-Thank You- 
Penny Black: Winsome 3811J , Salutations 30-014, For All You Do 3854D


Watermelon Adirondack ink was brayered onto glossy cardstock to create the background for these flowers heat embossed in white.

 



-Full of Life-
Penny Black: Corner Piece 3859H, Astilbe 3872H, Full of Life 3641F

A combination of Nestability die-cuts created the focal layers of this card.  The Astilbe stamped in Summer Sky Memento ink provides a soft, muted background for the sentiment.



You can see more monochromatic card ideas featured throughout the month on the Penny Black Blog as the designers showcase their amazing takes on this theme.

Enjoy exploring one color at a time.

Elizabeth

January 10, 2011

Merci

This little "Merci" greeting was made from some small bits of artwork that I had on my craft table.  I like how the monochromatic tone added to the simple elegance of the design.



I have been enjoying Tsukineko's line of metallic StazOn inks.  They're great for creating custom metallic cardstocks.  For this silver matting, I rubbed the metallic ink pad directly on white cardstock.  The ink dries very quickly and keeps its luster.


An extra Eiffel Tower adds some dimension to the greeting while the heart adds a punch of color.  My favorite Copic combination for blending reds is:  R24, R27, R29 and R39.  The gray shading is a blend of W2 and W3.



This is a closer view of the embossed vellum used on the background.  I flipped the vellum over so it had a "de-embossed" look and then sprayed it with Frost Sheer Shimmer Spritz.  I captured a little bit of the sparkle in the photo, but this is one of those cards that you need to see "in person" to get the full effect of the shimmery mist.

While I was working on this card I remembered that I have some other monochromatic cards that I made for Scrap & Stamp Arts earlier in the year which I will post for you in a few days.

Merci beaucoup for visiting!!
Elizabeth 


Supplies:
Tsukineko: Silver Metallic StazOn, Tuxedo Black Memento Ink, Frost Sheer Shimmer Spritz
Copic Markers
American Crafts:  Ribbon

January 7, 2011

A Fashionable Birthday Wish

Bonjour!

This card is for my dear friend Kathryn who will be turning 18 soon.  She loves fashion and design!  She is traveling to Paris next month and has the exciting opportunity to check out a fashion school while she is there.

I thought card would be perfect for her birthday.... 





I used a Fiskars border punch and singled out one of the decorative portions to create a tag. 


You'll also notice that I changed the design of the dress a bit by adding some hand drawn black lines to create a black lace overlay.


The Eiffel Tower included in the transparent set was the ideal image to create a coordinating envelope.  A quick elegant touch to add to the French theme.




Have a colorful day!

Au revoir,
Elizabeth

Supplies:
Copic Markers
Tsukineko:  Lilac Posies Memento Ink (Tag), Tuxedo Black Memento Ink, Sponge Dauber
Ranger:  Crystal Stickles
Sakura: Sparkle Gelly Roll Pen (accent for dress), .01 Black Micron Pen

January 4, 2011

Je t'aime Valentine Heart Box


I was inspired by handmade Valentines with all the sparkle and glitter that make the day so festive and fun to create this little box.

Tip:  Adding a ribbon to the top or sides of the box is an option for creating a decorative hanger.  



The pattern “here” is a simple triangle box.  Even though the two pieces appear to be the same size, the top is a bit larger so it will fit over the bottom portion of the box without binding.  These were traced onto red cardstock and stamped with Love Song in Crimson Red VersaFine ink.  After assembling the box parts, I marked on the back of each which was the top and bottom.




To create the box top, I rubbed Pearlescent Orange and Pearlescent Orchid Brilliance inks on white cardstock with sponge daubers.  Before the next step, I quickly dried the inks with a heat tool.  Love Grows was stamped over the blended inks with Crimson Red VersaFine ink.  While the ink was wet, I sprinkled the stamped image with Judi Kins Sticky Stuff embossing powder, tapped off the excess and heated.  (Hint: Be careful to not overheat and cure the powder.)  After the powder had been heated to create a tacky surface, I sprinkled Ruby Red Microfine glitter on top and tapped off the excess.  A light, fluffy paintbrush is helpful to remove any stubborn glitter than may be statically attached.  Another quick flash of heat set the powder.

To create a template for the heart, I simply freehand cut around the stamped design and used the trimmed image to create three additional “die-cut” looking pieces.  I traced two additional hearts onto a heavy-weight file folder (adds great stability to the project) and one onto red cardstock.  This gave me perfectly matched cut outs even though I may have trimmed the first heart a bit asymmetrical.  The two manila hearts were painted with Snow Cap Adirondack Acrylic Paint.  





The scalloped edge was designed by punching ½” white cardstock circles and positioning them around the backside of the stamped heart.  For illustration/photographic purposes, I used pink circles in this example which provided a better contrast against the white cardstock.  I did a quick “dry run” with the circles to see if the fit worked around the shape.  This gave me the opportunity to make any notes if some circles needed to be adjusted or overlapped slightly before adding the adhesive. 


After the circles were positioned around the perimeter of the stamped heart, one of the white painted hearts was attached over top to cover the exposed edges.  The same steps were used for the back of the box using the other white painted heart and the red cardstock heart for the back.  To give the scallops extra sparkle, I painted them (both sides) with USArtQuest’s Duo Embellishing Adhesive and added Angel Dust Microfine glitter.

Next, the triangle box sections were glued to the corresponding artwork for the front and back.  A small banner was cut from white cardstock and stamped with Je t'aime in Onyx Black VersaFine ink and heat embossed with clear powder.  Before the banner was creased with a z-fold on each end and the ribbon inserted, it was sprayed with Frost Sheer Shimmer Spritz.  It is hard to see in the photo, but this mist gives white cardstock an extremely elegant finish.

To help sort out the supplies from the instructions, I have included an “at-a-glance” summary below for a quick reference.

Have a wonderful day,
Elizabeth

Supply Summary
Tsukineko: Pearlescent Orange Brilliance, Pearlescent Orchid Brilliance, Onyx Black VersaFine, Crimson Red VersaFine, Frost Sheer Shimmer Spritz, Sponge Daubers
Judi Kins:  Sticky Stuff Embossing Powder
USArtQuest: Duo Embellishing Adhesive
Barbara Trombley’s Art Glitter:  Angel Dust, Ruby Red
American Crafts: Boutique Rouge Ribbon (Sheer with Satin Edges)
Ranger:  Snow Cap Adirondack Acrylic Paint


January 3, 2011

Save the Date!

If you enjoy blog hops and would like the chance to win fabulous Penny Black rubber stamps, you will want to mark January 15 on your calendar.  Penny Black at Allsorts is having a blog hop!


Click here for additional details.  


They are also having their monthly challenge.  January's theme is:  All You Need Is Love.  To read more about the challenge and the great prizes available click "here".

I hope you have time to visit tomorrow.  I have a Valentine box to share - lots of sparkle and glitter!

Smiles,
Elizabeth