HAPPY EVERYTHING

Today kicks off a big week at Penny Black!

They are revealing their newest release and catalog "Happy Everything".  All during the week they will be sharing peeks of the fabulous stamp designs as well as designer inspiration.  Follow along each day "here" to be the first to see all the colorful happiness ----- and new surprises!

I am joining in the fun and sharing one of the cards I designed and taught as a make-n-take at CHA. It showcases three of their newest products: Fronds (Large Slapstick Background), After Glow (Creative Dies), and Kind Words (Transparent Sentiment Set).

Here are the instructions so you can join in too.....

1)  Stamp Fronds (40-314) in Wedding Dress Memento Luxe on a piece of white cardstock slightly smaller than the card base and then set aside to dry.

2)  Die cut lanterns (After Glow 51-034) from Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstocks (Grand Canyon, Blue Lagoon, Rose Garden).  Highlight each lantern with a coordinating ink (Tangelo Memento, Teal Zeal Memento, Lilac Posies Memento) and then pounce each piece with Frost VersaMark Watermark ink.

3)  Thread the lanterns onto black string and drape across the top of the stamped cardstock. Secure the ends of the string to the back of the cardstock. Tuck a small piece of dimensional foam under each lantern.

4)  Stamp the sentiment (Kind Words 30-226) in Onyx Black VersaFine below the lanterns.

5)  Attached the finished artwork to a white card base with dimensional foam tape.

Enjoy all the colorful happiness....

Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black Stamps: Fronds 40-314, Kind Words 30-226
Penny Black Creative Dies: After Glow 51-034
Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Grand Canyon 03-001, Blue Lagoon 09-001, Rose Garden 14-001
3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape
Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Wedding Dress Memento Luxe, Tangelo Memento, Teal Zeal Memento, Lilac Posies Memento, Frost VersaMark Watermark Ink, Sponge Daubers

Love Is In The Air - Week 4: Flowers, Flutters & More (Card 3 of 3)

A whole month to share all the love that is in the air!  

During January, I will be featuring posts celebrating hugs, kisses, and Valentine wishes.

This week's focus is on flowers, flutters and more.

For the finale of the four-week long Love Is In The Air extravaganza, just one "more" thing....a cutie pie tag.

To create a small canopied cafe to enjoy a cup of love, a die cut tag (Tagged - Penny Black) was accented with another tag trimmed shorter, embossed with dots, and edged with scallop scissors.

Memento Luxe inks (Lilac Posies and Rose Bud) were blended with separate daubers to create the faded background.

The new transparent Valentine set (Ooh La La) by Penny Black holds all the fashionable designs to make this scene come alive. Each image was stamped on a separate piece of white cardstock in Onyx Black VersaFine and heat embossed with clear powder. After coloring with Copics, they were attached to the front of the prepared tag.

Thank you for celebrating a month of hearts, hugs and kisses with me!

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps: Ooh La La 30-210
Penny Black Creative Dies: Tagged 51-007

3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape
American Crafts Ribbon

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Lilac Posies & Rose Bud Memento Luxe, Sponge Daubers, Clear Embossing Powder 

Love Is In The Air - Week 1: Die Cutting (Card 3 of 3)

A whole month to share all the love that is in the air!  

During January, I will be featuring posts celebrating hugs, kisses, and Valentine wishes.

This week's focus is on die cuts. 

For this card, I wanted to use Penny Black's new "Love Buds" die cut in a different orientation.  Instead of positioning the stem vertically, I rotated it horizontally.  They were also sent through the die cutting machine a second time with a rubber mat to give them an embossed design.  I colored them with the same approach as the card posted on Monday, which first added a soft hue of Copic color to the white cardstock and then were highlighted with Faber-Castell Pitt Pastel Pencils.

To create the flower head, the heart (From the Heart - Penny Black) was stamped in Onyx Black VersaFine and heat embossed with clear powder. After trimming the element, Love Letter Memento was sponged around the outer edges leaving a bit of white in the center for a soft glow.

The shading in Peanut Brittle Memento was done first before the sentiment (From the Heart - Penny Black) was stamped in black.  I like to stamp the sentiments last so they are nice and crisp and to eliminate the possibility of smearing when I am adding highlighting.

I will be back on Monday with the start of Week 2 of Love Is In The Air.

Have a great weekend,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Creative Dies: Love Buds 51-024

Penny Black Stamps: From the Heart 30-207
Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Blue Lagoon 09-001
3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape
Copics
Faber-Castell: Pitt Pastel Pencils
Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Love Letter Memento, Peanut Brittle Memento, Jumbo Sponge Dauber, Clear Embossing Powder
Other: Pearl Beads

Love Is In The Air - Week 1: Die Cutting (Card 2 of 3)

A whole month to share all the love that is in the air!  

During January, I will be featuring posts celebrating hugs, kisses, and Valentine wishes.

This week's focus is on die cuts. 

One thing that I enjoy about working with sentiment die cuts is that they can be "puzzle pieced" into a design.

After this circular die cut had "hugs" (Penny Black) die cut from the center, it was "puzzle pieced" with another die cut of "hugs" from a different color of cardstock.

The balance of this card occurs from the top down. To add more design weight as the eye travels down the vertical elements, a small set of xo's (Ooh La La - Penny Black) were stamped in black under the die cut and then a larger section of stamping (Heart Swatches - Penny Black) in Rhubarb Stalk Memento was added to the base of the red cardstock.  Small white gel pen accents help the eye transition from sections of red and white cardstock that occur throughout the design.

Thank you for stopping by,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Creative Dies: Love Expressions 51-025

Penny Black Stamps: Ooh la la 30-210 (xoxo), Heart Swatches 30-204 (pattern design)

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Purple Mountain 12-002, Fuchsia Fantasies 13-001, Fall Festival 16-003

3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onxy Black VersaFine, Rhubarb Stalk Memento, Lilac Posies, Sponge Dauber

Sakura: White Gel Pen

Spellbinders: Standard Circles, Scalloped Circles

Love Is In The Air - Week 1: Die Cutting (Card 1 of 3)

A whole month to share all the love that is in the air!  

During January, I will be featuring posts celebrating hugs, kisses, and Valentine wishes.

This week's focus is on die cuts. 

This rose die cut (Penny Black) was colored with two different mediums: Copic Markers and Faber-Castell Pitt Pastel Pencils. Soft hues of Copic color were added to the white die cut first to infuse the cardstock with color and then the pastel pencils were used for the shading and highlights.  

A bit of chalking behind the elevated rose adds to the shadowing. The accent strip of green cardstock was stamped with Decadence (Penny Black) in Bamboo Leaves Memento.

The sentiment "A Valentine Wish" (Penny Black) was stamped in Onyx Black VersaFine.  What I liked about this particular design is that by simply changing the greeting I could use it for a variety of other occasions.  

Have a great day,
Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black Creative Dies: Rose 51-023

Penny Black Stamps: Decadence 40-254, From the Heart 30-207

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Fern Green 05-002

3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape

Copic Markers

Faber-Castell: Pitt-Pastel Pencils

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Bamboo Leaves Memento

MERRY CHRISTMAS

A holiday wish created with Penny Black's Creative Die "Dancing Leaves".

I am looking forward to more artful happiness in my studio and will return in the new year.

Enjoy the love, joy and peace of the season.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps: City Lights 40-270 (sentiment)

Penny Black Creative Dies: Dancing Leaves 51-016

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Fuchsia Fantasies 13-002
3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape
American Crafts: Ribbon
Copic Markers
Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine

Snowflake Wishes

Die cutting, embossing and stamping....a trio of happiness!!

Penny Black is sharing their second week of Christmas die-cutting inspiration and I thought it would be fun to create a card that could be used for a variety of occasions throughout the winter.  

I started with one of my favorite summer color combinations and adapted it into this wintry wish.  

The largest die cut snowflake from Snowflake Trio was colored with pink acrylic paint, dusted with micro fine crystal glitter and accented with an orange brad.  

The embossed pattern was created with another metal die called Dots.  Tip/Hint:  When metal dies are used with embossing mats, they make great textural backgrounds. 

After stamping Christmas Notes, a segment was trimmed from the design and turned on it's side for a decorative band.  Tip/Hint: Portions of stamped designs offer numerous possibilities for collage elements.   

Happy stamping and die cutting!
Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps: ChristmasNotes 4345K, Whooo’sWishing 30-190 (sentiment)

Penny Black Creative Dies: Snowflake Trio 51-015, Dots 51-009

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Storm 01-001, 01-002
3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape
Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Teal Zeal Memento, Jumbo Sponge Dauber, Clear Embossing Powder
Other: Pink Acrylic Paint, Orange Brad, Crystal Micro Fine Glitter

Fancy Metallic Flourish

I am particularly fond of fussy cut images so you can imagine how much I enjoy intricate die cuts.

Fancy Flourish from Penny Black's line of Creative Dies is one of my favorites.  It takes center stage layered with a tone-on-tone design stamped with Decadence .

To read how this die cut was created with a metallic finish using PanPastels...

Click "here"

Have a wonderful day,
Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps: Decadence 40-254, Yuletide Greetings 30-192

Penny Black Creative Dies: Fancy Flourish 51-020

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Forest Glen 07-001
Colorfin: PanPastels: Rich Gold, Bronze, Permanent Green, Ar
Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Crimson Red VersaFine, Jumbo Sponge Dauber, Clear Embossing Powder

Penny Black Wings of Peace & Giveaway

Today I have another make-n-take project that I shared at the Create-N-Connect convention in Las Vegas and giveaway news. 

This holiday greeting features one of Penny Black's new Creative Dies called Wings of Peace.

The negative die cut was placed over metallic gold paper with a few pop dots placed under the dove to give flight to the design.  The sentiment and holly branch are stamps from the transparent sets: Glad Tidings and Peace & Joy.

These two quick variations show how you can use the die cut for different techniques.

Here the white negative piece was "puzzled pieced" with a positive red die cut.

It's all about the glitter in this sample.  Clear packaging tape was placed on the back of the white (negative) die cut and then glitter was sprinkled on the front of the exposed "sticky" portions of the tape.

To give you an idea of how the positive image looks, I mounted it to red cardstock.

The definition of the precisely cut image makes a big impact.  Want a little sparkle?  Just add a touch of Stickles.

These designs are all a part of Penny Black's new Colorful Christmas which will be available starting August 16. 

Click "here" to read how you could win a stockingful of these new stamps valued at $100 (retail).  (Hurry...time is running out:  Giveaway closes 8/15/13, 11:59 PM PST.)

Good luck,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps: Glad Tidings 30-202, Peace and Joy 30-203

Penny Black Creative Dies: Wings of Peace 51-011

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Olympia Green VersaFine 

Clean, Simple & Stylish Holidays

Looking for an equation for making a clean, simple and stylish holiday card?  

The solution is as easy as basic addition.

Just take one fabulous Penny Black background (Jolly Chant) and
add one cool Creative Die (Xmas Tree) and it equals a chic card.

Look how fun this die cut is!  

Great for puzzle piecing the components.

You can see more new Colorful Christmas releases 
all this week "here" on the Penny Black Blog.

Holly-jolly smiles,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps:  Jolly Chant 40-250

Penny Black Creative Dies:  Xmas Tree 51-012

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Niagara Mist VersaMagic 

Mark Richards: Pearl Stickers

A Bouquet of Good Wishes

"Percolating" colorful flowers with coffee filters.

These were inspired by the large peony and hydrangea blooms that I have seen this summer.

Several groupings of coffee filters were scrunched together to make small flowers.  After coloring, the groupings were then assembled together for the larger bloom.

This orange and pink flower was colored with a combination of Dr. Ph. Martin's Hydrus Watercolors and Ranger Distress Paints.

And this blue flower was painted with just the Dr. Ph. Martin's Hydrus Watercolors.  

The wired stems were wrapped with twill tape colored with diluted Ranger Distress Paints.  

Tags die-cut from white cardstock using Penny Black's Tagged Creative Dies were first masked in the center with Eclipse Tape.  The flourish was stamped with VersaMark Watermark ink and then covered with an application of Phthalo Blue Tint and  Orange PanPastels.  After the mask was removed, the sentiment was stamped in Onyx Black VersaFine.

Colorful sheer ribbons with antique crystal buttons were attached for adornment.

Thank you for visiting.  Wishing you everlasting color....
Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black Stamps:  Gratitude 30-105
Penny Black Creative Dies: Tagged 51-007
Colorfin: Phthalo Blue Tint and Orange PanPastels, Sofft Art Sponges
Dr. Ph. Martin's Hydrus Watercolors
Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine
Judi Kins:  Eclipse Tape
Ranger Distress Paints
Other: Twill, Florist Wire,

Decorative Note Pad

Summertime fun with Penny Black and their newest challenge.

My inspiration was drawn from the yellows, oranges and reds that the sun shares with us.  I infused all that "heat" into a decorative note pad. 

Finished Size:  3 x 4 

The cover was constructed from recycled cardboard and covered with white cardstock that had been stamped with Lace Trims in VersaMark Watermark ink.  The added color was achieved by adding assorted PanPastels with Sofft Art Sponges over the Watermark ink impressions.

The top flap is adorned with a cardstock band accented with Iridescent Scribbles 3D Paint and a painted die cut butterfly (Flutters).

Tucked inside is a custom note pad created from trimmed copy paper that was sealed on one end with Mod Podge.  A magnetic snap makes a great closure mechanism. 

For more creative ways to "Beat the Heat" and to join in the challenge, please visit the Penny Black Blog "HERE".

Sunbeam smiles,
Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps: Lace Trims 30-181

Penny Black Creative Dies:  Flutters 51-006

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Storm 01-001

Basic Grey: Magnetic Snap

Colorfin: PanPastels (Titanium White, Diarylide Yellow, Orange, Permanent Green); Sofft Art Sponges

Duncan: White Mist Iridescent Scribbles 3D Paint

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: VersaMark Watermark Ink

Other: Crimson Acrylic Paint, Cardboard, Mod Podge (adhesive) 

Just a Note

One of my favorite styles of cards to design uses predominately white card bases with a splash of color and dimensional layers.

Elegance in just a few steps and easy to create multiples for gift sets.

Instructions

• Score a 3 1/8 x 4 1/2-inch piece of white cardstock with 3 horizontal lines, stamp with a sentiment and attach to the front of a white Les Petites card base with dimensional foam.
• Highlight a small piece of white cardstock with Wheat VersaMagic and stamp Fleur De Lys in Cornucopia VersaMagic.  Edge the sides with Delicata Golden Glitz ink.
• Die cut the Iris from white cardstock and color with pencils and chalk.  Attach to the stamped rectangle with a small piece of dimensional foam under the top of the flower and wrap the bottom portion of the stem to the back.
• Attach the artwork to the front of the prepared card using dimensional foam.

May you day bloom with happiness.
Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black Creative Dies: Iris 51-005
Penny Black Stamps:  Fleur De Lys 40-204, Wishes 30-103
Penny Black Les Petites: White 90-001
Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Storm 01-001
3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape
Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Wheat VersaMagic, Cornucopia VersaMagic, Delicata Golden Glitz, Jumbo Sponge Dauber, Clear Embossing Powder
Other: Prismacolor Pencils, Chalk

Friendship Is A Flower

Today I have a flower cut from Penny Black's garden of Creative Dies.

This cute little flower called "Bashful" is paired with Mix & Match Cardstocks stamped with Dots In Space and Roman Surround in Persimmon VersaMagic and Opera Pink VersaColor. 

Enjoy,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Creative Dies: Bashful 51-008

Penny Black Stamps: Roman Surround 40-201, Dots in Space 40-144, Friendship 30-160

Penny Black Les Petites: White 90-001

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Storm 01-001, Summer Sun 17-002, Fuchsia Fanstasies 13-003

3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape

Copic Marker: C1

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Opera Pink VersaColor, Persimmon VersaMagic

Celebrate

No need to huff and puff to blow up these balloons.  Create all three in one pass through your die cutting machine.

Three balloon dies from Uplifting were positioned on small pieces of colored Mix & Match Cardstock, run through a die cutting machine and stamped with patterns (Dots in Space and Puzzle Parts).

Add a few strings with a bow and you are ready to celebrate.  

Fun, colorful and fast wishes...

Enjoy,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Creative Dies: Uplifting 51-004

Penny Black Stamps: Dots in Space 40-144, Puzzle Parts 30-144, Sweet Wishes 30-104 (sentiment)

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Fern Green 05-001, Blue Skies 10-002, Coral Reef 15-003

3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape

Image Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Bahama Blue Memento, Pear Tart Memento, Clear Embossing Powder 

Other: White Gel Pen, Black String, White Ribbon

Penny Black's Creative Dies

Penny Black has a new addition to their product line....Creative Dies!  They just launched their first 10 designs and they have more on the way.  The dies are spectacular and they cut magnificently.  

This design utilizes both the negative and positive cuts of the leaf image.  The positive portion is used to decorate the envelope while the negative space on the card holds sparkling glitter.  The butterfly is one of their new die cuts too.

Grab your clear packaging tape and hop over to the Penny Black blog "HERE" for the complete instructions.

Smiles,
Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Creative Dies: Leaves 51-002, Tagged 51-007

Penny Black Stamps: Lace Trims 30-181, Blissful 40-205, Flower Gallery 30-031

Penny Black Les Petites: Berrylicious 90-004

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Storm 01-001, 01-003; 09-001

3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape

Duncan: Scribbles 3D Paint (Iridescent White Mist)

Faber-Castell: PITT Artist Pen Big Brush Markers (Orange Glaze, Pink Madder, Magenta)

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Habanero VersaFine, Teal Zeal Memento, Clear Embossing Powder, Jumbo Sponge Dauber

Martha Stewart Glitter: Feldspar

Ranger Distress Paint: Weathered Wood

Sakura: Black Glaze Pen

Tombow: Permanent Adhesive Stamp Runner

Zig: Glue Pen

Other: Clear Packaging Tape

Embrace Happiness

Having fun with Penny Black's new line of Creative Dies.  

Today I am using "Delicate Wings".  This fabulous two-part set allows you to cut both solid and detailed images.    

And that's not all....This particular die also coordinates with the slapstick stamp called Soft Wings!

A soft dusting of Phthalo Blue Tint PanPastel was used on the detailed die cut to add just a bit of color to tie in with the Verdant pattern stamped on the blue cardstock in Sea Breeze VersaMagic.  The solid butterfly used as an underlay was die cut from Fall Festival.

Quick, easy and oh so delicately die cut.

Thanks for fluttering by for a visit.

Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black Creative Dies: Delicate Wings 50-010
Penny Black Stamps: Verdant 4310K, Friendship 30-160
Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Storm 01-001, Blue Lagoon 09-003, Fall Festival 16-001
3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape
Colorfin: Phthalo Blue Tint PanPastel
Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Sea Breeze VersaMagic, Clear Embossing Powder
Mark Richards: Pearl Stickers