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

Fun Friends & Creative Dies

All this week Penny Black has been celebrating the newest addition to their product line... Creative Dies!  They have also sprinkled in more new rubber stamps.

This mini card was created with the new transparent set Homemade and a banner from the Tagged Creative Dies set which includes 9 different shapes.

  

Make this "summer refreshment" in 4 steps!  

1. Trim a Les Petites card base to measure 3 x 3 3/4.  Round the top right corner.  Stamp the sentiment in Onyx Black VersaFine and heat emboss with clear powder.  Set aside.
2. Die cut the banner from red cardstock and stamp Warm Wishes (checkered pattern) on top with Love Letter Memento ink.
3. Attach the banner to the front of the prepared card with dimensional foam tape and accent the left end with a black glaze pen to create three faux brads.
4. Stamp "Homemade" on a separate piece of white cardstock in Onyx Black VersaFine and heat emboss with clear powder.  Watercolor the image and fussy cut.  Adhere to the banner as shown.

TIP/HINT:  To extend/lengthen banners, simply cut the image in half letting the left and right hand sides extend beyond the layered image.  The separation cut will be hidden behind the layered image.

Happy Friday,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps: Homemade 30-119, Friendship 30-160, Warm Wishes 40-074

Penny Black Creative Dies: Tagged 51-007

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Storm 01-001, Fall Festival 16-003

Penny Black Les Petites 90-001

3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape

Image Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Love Letter Memento, Clear Embossing Powder

Sakura: Black Glaze Pen

Staedtler Karat Aquarell Watercolor Pencils

Other: Corner Rounder

A Fun Twist for Card Blanks

Here is a fast card that adds a fun twist to a basic card blank.

White 12 x 12 cardstock makes designing these cards a snap and you can cut three blanks from one sheet of paper!

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Cut a 3 ½ x 11 ¾ piece of white cardstock and score on the horizontal edge, vertical lines at 5 and 10 inches.
2. On the small remaining flap, measure and lightly mark the center on the edge of the cardstock.  Trim from the top and bottom fold lines to the pencil mark to create a point.
3. Apply Morocco Memento ink to the pointed flap with a jumbo sponge dauber.  Stamp the sentiment in Onyx Black VersaFine.
4. Stamp Trailing Beauty across the front with Morocco ink.
5. Center and cut a 1 inch vertical slit in the front flap that is positioned 1 3/8 inches from the right edge.

• Optional:  Ink the inside of the pointed flap with the same color ink and add another sentiment.

Enjoy,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps:  Trailing Beauty 40-207, A Bunch 30-174 (sentiment)

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko:  Onyx Black VersaFine, Morocco Memento Ink, Jumbo Sponge Dauber

Other: 12 x 12 white cardstock

For questions and/or comments, please feel free to e-mail me at:  elizabeth.a.allan@gmail.com

Color Blocking with PanPastels

I have read a lot about PanPastels, but nothing prepared me for the exquisite blending properties until I actually had a chance to work with the chalks.

 

I set up a card design that required a block to be masked off and began adding Orange and Diarylide Yellow PanPastels with Sofft Art Sponges.  The instantaneous color was fabulous and it was extremely easy to seamlessly blend the two.

Another wonderful feature was the ability to remove the chalk. After detaching the masks, I had one or two spots that I was able to define and sharpen with a slight brush of an eraser.  A quick spray of fixative and the piece was ready for the sentiment (Friendship) to be stamped in black.  After matting the artwork with Rose Garden cardstock and embellishing it with a bit of ribbon, it was attached with dimensional foam to a card blank stamped with dots (Dots in Space) in Wheat VersaMagic.

I am looking forward to all the possibilities of working with PanPastels in my mixed media projects as well!

If you are looking for more creative inspiration using PanPastels, please check out their website "here" or their Mixed Media Studio on Facebook "here".

Have a great day,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

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

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Storm 01-001, Rose Garden 14-003

American Crafts: Ribbon

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Wheat VersaMagic

PanPastels(Colorfin): Orange, Diarylide Yellow, Sofft Art Sponges

Other: Yellow Brad, Dimensional Foam Tape

For questions and/or comments, please feel free to e-mail me at:  elizabeth.a.allan@gmail.com

A "Beary" Happy Wednesday

Hello friends!

Today I have two cards with watercolored bears from Penny Black’s cute and cuddly Teddy and Company transparent set.

My favorite way to start a watercoloring project is to stamp the image in Onyx Black VersaFine and heat emboss with clear powder.

TIP/HINT:  Striped ribbons offer both vertical and horizontal visual interest.

Thank you for visiting,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps: Teddy and Company 30-034

American Crafts: Ribbon

Canson: Watercolor Paper

Prima Flowers

Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Clear Embossing Powder

Watercolors

Shoes & Friends (CAS)

Hello Everyone!

These chic new Penny Black transparent sets Hello Gorgeous and A Little Bird have a terrific mix of stylish and retro designs. 

For this card, I kept the design simple and added a few subtle textural elements.

In the center of the card, I dry embossed a small rectangle and distressed it with Memento’s new Peanut Brittle ink and a sponge dauber.  Dimensional foam was used to adhere the shoes to the card. 

Happy Wednesday,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps: Hello Gorgeous 30-097, A Little Bird 30-102, Too Many 3853F

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Storm 01-001

Copic Markers

Ranger: Crystal Stickles

Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Peanut Brittle Memento Ink, Clear Embossing Powder, Sponge Dauber

Mixing Stamp Styles

Two different stamp styles can be the perfect match! 

Today I am mixing Penny Black’s modern images with several elegant.

These are the stamps that were combined to create the card.



With Journal / Inspiring
Awakening / Scented Message
Garden of Life

The overall design was influenced by the girl’s notebook.  I wanted to create the illusion that she was thinking about a recent journal entry.

Awakening was stamped on white cardstock with black ink and heat embossed with clear powder.  Several tones of green were used to the color the flowers and then parts of the image were used to create the bushes behind the girl (With Journal).

The “page” is a piece of white cardstock distressed with Peanut Brittle and Bahama Blue Memento inks.  The “journaling/sketch” is Scented Message stamped in Peanut Brittle Memento ink.  With the background prepared, the girl and the newly created bushes were added and layered with dimensional foam.

TIP/HINT:  To create the appearance of spiral-bound paper, use a hole punch to create an evenly spaced row of holes and then use scissors to remove very tiny slits of paper.

The bottom of the “page” is finished with the sentiment stamped in black.

A subtle wood-grain texture stamped in Danube Blue Memento ink was added to the lower half of the dark blue card base.

Enjoy de-categorizing and mixing your stamp styles for endless creative combinations.

Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black Stamps: Awakening 4237K, Garden of Life 4263F, Scented Message 4239K, Inspiring 40-113, With Journal 40-127
Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Clear Skies 10-003

3M Scotch:  Dimensional Foam Tape

Copic Markers

Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Bahama Blue Memento, Danube Blue Memento, Peanut Brittle Memento, Clear Embossing Powder, Jumbo Sponge Daubers 

Celebrate Friends

Beginning today, the Penny Black Blog will be featuring “All Occasion” cards.  Over the next ten days, there will be great ideas for making cards that can be used anytime during the year!

I created a “friendship” card for the event.

The summer sun card base was stamped with Circular Design in Habanero VersaFine ink with an added bit of distressing around the edges.

The fussy cut mice are from The Touch of Love transparent set.  The flag was created by combining the banner from Halloween Treats with the word “friends” from the True Friends verse.

Tip/Hint:  Stamp “friends” from the wood block stamp first and then stamp the banner.  With the banner being an acrylic stamp, it is easy to view the sentiment through the stamp and acrylic block for quick alignment.

The elements are elevated on a Spellbinders’ Label Eighteen die cut which was shaded with a jumbo sponge dauber and Majestic Blue VersaFine ink.

Thank you for YOUR friendship!

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps: The Touch of Love 30-089, Circular Design 40-046, Halloween Treats 30-078, True Friends 3852E

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Summer Sun 17-003

Copic Markers

Dimensional Foam: EK Success, 3M Scotch

Spellbinders: Labels Eighteen (S4-310)

Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Majestic Blue VersaFine, Habanero VersaFine, Jumbo Sponge Dauber, Clear Embossing Powder

Other: Florist Wire

A Dandy Lion Hello

When this cat from the Airmail set just happen to fit inside this flower made from the Sundial stamp, I immediately thought of a lion’s head.  The overall shape also reminded me of a dandelion.  But, in this case, a Dandy Lion!

You can see how the flower and stem are part of the Sundial stamp in this post here.

All those wonderful cardstocks are from Penny Black’s Mix & Match collection.  Great colors! 

Here are a few quick details for this card….

• Stamp the sentiment on a 2 5/8 x 3 ¼-inch piece of white cardstock with black ink and heat emboss with clear powder.
• Mat with a 2 ¾ x 3 ¼-inch piece of rust cardstock and mount with dimensional foam to a 3 x 3 ½-inch tan card.
• Color cat with Copics and mat with a flower colored with Fired Brick Distress and Peeled Paint Distress inks.  (Flower details linked here.)
• Adhere with dimensional foam to a 5/8 x 2-inch piece of yellow cardstock that has been edged with Scattered Straw Distress ink.
• Attach to the front of the prepared card.

Thank you for visiting.

Have a dandy day,

Elizabeth 

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps:  Airmail 30-072, Hello Friend 30-069, Sundial 4159K

Penny Black “Mix & Match” Cardstock: Sticks & Stones 02-002, Grand Canyon 03-002, Summer Sun 17-001

Copic Markers

Tsukineko:  Onyx Black VersaFine Ink

Ranger:  Fired Brick Distress, Peeled Paint Distress, Scattered Straw Distress, Super Fine Detail Clear Embossing Powder

3M Scotch:  Dimensional Foam

Together Always (Day 3 of 3 - Triangles)

Today’s triangle card is a bit more modern and contemporary.



Red cardstock triangles burnished with Fired Brick Distress ink lend a splash of color and highlight the stamped images.

A combination of Spellbinders Circle Nestabilities creates an elevated focal point for the sentiment and tandem bicycle.

Card Instructions:

• Score vertical lines on the front left edge of a 4 x 5 ½-inch white card.
• Cut one small and one large triangle from red cardstock and burnish with Fired Brick Distress Ink.  Stamp tire tracks with black Memento ink.  Adhere the triangles to a 3 ¾ x 4 3/8-inch piece of white cardstock with dimensional foam.
• Stamp sentiment with black ink in the lower right corner.
• Attach the mat to the front of the prepared card with dimensional foam.
• Create a dimensional circle embellishment with Circle Nestabilities and stamp the sentiment with black ink. Layer the circle components with dimensional foam.
• Ink the bicycle with black pigment ink and heat emboss with clear powder.  Trim the image and layer over the circle with dimensional foam.
• Attach the circle embellishment over the points of the triangles with dimensional foam.
• Accent card with crystal gems.

Thank you for joining me this week.  Have fun using triangles in your cards!

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps:  Together Always 40-053
Penny Black "Mix & Match" Cardstock: Fall Festival 16-003
Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Tuxedo Black Memento Ink
Ranger: Fired Brick Distress Ink, Super Fine Detail Clear Embossing Powder
Spellbinders: Standard Circle Nestabilities (Sm S4-116 and Lg S4-114)
3M Scotch:  Dimensional Foam Tape
Mark Richards: Crystal Sticker Elements

Friendship

Frogs and snails and puppy dog tails - that's what little boys are made of.....



Finished Size:  4" Square


All of the stamps used for this card are from Penny Black's new Touch of Whimsy catalog.  

I “borrowed” the soccer ball from the hedgie stamp called “Game On” to add to this cute boy and his best friend.  To transform the ball from whimsical to well-loved, I scuffed it with Antique Linen ink.

I love the versatility of breaking sentiments up when stamping.  It allows me to use the remaining portion on the inside of the card or mix and match with other phrases.  Here a portion of the Friendship sentiment was used along with the Zen background on Mix & Match cardstocks.  To soften the pieces, I distressed them with inks. 

The stitching was added with a black pen and there is dimensional foam between the base of the card and matted cardstocks and under the boy and ball.

Thank you for visiting,
Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black Stamps:  Nose to Nose 40-057, Zen 40-051, Friendship 4176H, Game On 4129J

Penny Black “Mix & Match” Cardstock:  Storm 01-001, Fern Green 05-003, Clear Skies 10-003

Tsukineko:  Onyx Black VersaFine, Spanish Moss VersaFine, Jumbo Sponge Daubers

Ranger:  Antique Linen, Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain, Mustard Seed, Detail Fine Embossing Powder

Copic Markers

3M Scotch:  Dimensional Foam

Sakura:  Black Micron Pen

Special Friends

To finish my design week on the Penny Black Blog, I have a colorful bouquet.  

Penny Black's Mix & Match cardstocks not only make coordinating colors and layers easy, but the one-sided color feature also gives you fantastic results for sanding techniques.

The base of this card was made from the darkest shade of Clear Skies and the lightest shade was used for the background paper stamped with Delicate Pattern in Majestic Blue VersaFine.

The bouquet from "To You" was colored with Copics and then trimmed.  Extra flowers from an additional stamped image were added on top for dimension.  Stickles and a sheer green ribbon were added for embellishment.  

To balance the design, a few horizontal dry-embossed lines were added to the sentiment frame before it was matted with purple cardstock.

It has been a wonderful week sharing my designs on the Penny Black Blog.  Don't forget to enter your designs for the "thank you" challenge for the chance to win Penny Black stamps! (Click here for details)

Beginning on Monday, I will be sharing my Tombow Guest Designer tutorial projects.

Thank you for your wonderful comments and visits.

Happy Easter,
Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black Stamps: To You 30-067, Teddy and Company 30-034, Delicate Pattern 40-047

Penny Black “Mix & Match” Cardstock: Storm 01-001, Clear Skies 10-001, 10-003, Fuchsia Fantasies 13-003

Penny Black Online Store

Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Majestic Blue VersaFine

Copic Markers

Ranger: Waterfall, Orange Peel, Stardust, Fruit Punch Stickles

Offray: Sheer Green Ribbon

3M Scotch: Dimensional Foam Tape