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Watercolor is Definitely Soothing!

Papertrey, Sewing/Stitching, Techniques, Tombow Marker, Wrinkle-Free Distress 32 Responses »

Sep 052009

Good morning! Before I head out to Utica Days and the car show, I want to take a moment and thank all of you who left comments and/or emailed yesterday! You can’t even begin to know how much all of your well wishes and encouragement has meant to me. I feel so blessed!!

I won’t let this get me down, as I have many more things I want to create and ideas to put to paper. As some of you have said, “when one door closes, another opens.” I have told myself that all week and realize that sometimes one has to take risks to see the greater rewards. I’ve never been one to take the path well trod . . . I like to veer off and have as many adventures as possible. I know there’s one hell of an adventure in my future!

Last night was the first time all week that I have felt the least bit creative, so I headed down to the studio. The first thing I needed to do was clean up after myself from stamp club and put things away that had accumulated around. I felt good then and decided to do some water coloring. This is one of those cards that I became totally immersed and lost all track of time . . . but by golly, I really like it!

The flowers and leaves from Papertrey’s In Bloom were stamped individually, embossed with gold EP, and then water colored with Tombow Markers. I patiently cut them all out and arranged them around a panel made from Spellbinders Labels 7. The sentiment is from the Papertrey set Floral Fusion (the Limited Edition from Summer CHA 2009). Yes, I spent enough money to get that set . . . not surprised are you? Oh one more thing, the sentiment panel and the one it’s mounted on was made with the Wrinkle Free Distress technique on watercolor paper . . . absolutely LOVE the look of this technique with watercolor paper. If you haven’t tried it, you need to! Can you tell from the photo that each flower was raised above the other with mounting tape? It truly does add to the dimension of the card.

Stamps: In Bloom and Floral Fusion from Papertrey
Paper: Papertrey Craft; Prism Majestic Purple Light; Vanilla; BasicGrey Wisteria; Arches Watercolor
Ink: Ranger Distress Embossing, Old Paper and Dusty Concord
Accessories: Spellbinders S4-231 Labels 7, S4-138 Petite Oval Nestabilities Large, and S4-139 Petite Scalloped Oval Nestabilities Large; Ranger Queen’s Gold Embossing Powder, Mini Mister, Gold Perfect Pearls, Non-Stick Craft Sheet; Papertrey Vintage Cream Satin Ribbon; Tombow Markers; Venture Foam Tape; Tsukineko Sponge Dauber; Sewing Machine

I suppose that’s all I have for the time being, except to tell you all that I’m so thankful for you!! Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by! I’m off to yard sale and hopefully find some great bargains.

Time to Play and Get Inky!

Papertrey, Sewing/Stitching, Spellbinders, Techniques, Tombow Marker 22 Responses »

Aug 222009

Good Saturday morning! I can’t believe that I had the entire day yesterday to spend in the studio and play! It was so nice. Remember I told you that I bought arms full of stuff from Papertrey at CHA? I finally had some time to play with In Bloom yesterday. I actually have pulled the set out a few times, tried to color it, became discouraged and put it away. Yesterday everything came together just as I had envisioned. Trust me . . . that never ever happens to me! Not only that, but my goal was to use these images not in the Papertrey classic style. You see, I don’t do that style, it’s hard for me and I always struggle with something clean and simple (which is what I consider Papertrey to be). So my challenge to myself was to incorporate these images into my style.

The flower was stamped three times, embossed with Queen’s Gold EP, and then water colored with Tombow Markers. I trimmed each layer out, leaving off a section of each as I went so that they could be layered. I used the new Spellbinders S4-230 Labels Six for the sentiment and for an extra piece on the bottom right-hand corner. I also finished the inside so that a personal note could be written.

The sentiment is from the Papertrey set, Friends ‘til the End, and I melted the ribbon to make it look more vintage and worn.

Stamps: In Bloom and Friends ‘til the End from Papertrey
Paper: SU Black; Prism Butter cream; 7 Gypsies Classic Paperie; Arches Watercolor
Ink: Ranger Archival Jet Black, and Distress Embossing, Vintage Photo and Old Paper
Accessories: Spellbinders S4-230 Labels Six; Ranger Queen’s Gold Embossing Powder, Matte and Glossy Accents, Gold Acrylic Paint Dabber; 7 Gypsies Paper Fasteners; Venture Foam Tape; Tsukineko Sponge Daubers; May Arts Ribbon; Papertrey Vintage Buttons; Candle Lighter; Sewing Machine; Tim Holtz Tonic Paper Distressing Tool

I hope you have a wonderful weekend and thanks for stopping by today!

Rainy Days, Shopping and Pedicures!

Her Badness, Misting with Markers, Stampin' UP!, Techniques, Tombow Marker 11 Responses »

Jul 232009

Good morning! Hope you had a good day yesterday. It was rainy here, but I still spent the morning running with my girls. There was some last minute shopping that needed to be done for me. Kate needed to get some supplies for her new classroom (Yeah for my middle school educator) and Mallory needed some stuff for her sorority meeting she’s got coming up. In and out of the rain we ran, until at lunch I was soaked to the skin and cold. I had asked Mallory about a pedicure earlier in the week, as I had never had one before . . . until today. Because Mallory told me the chairs were heated, I treated myself and the girls to pedicures at a little place next to where we had lunch. I can’t believe that I have NEVER treated myself to a pedicure before, but I can guarantee that it will not be the last. Just look at these great footsies!

I asked if I could have a discount because I only had 9 toes. They only laughed at me and continued on. Hmmpf!

Anyhoo, after my nap (I was sooooo cold with a major headache and wrapped up in a blanket . . . that’s all it took) I was feeling pretty good. I headed down to the studio and wanted to stamp, but just didn’t know with what. Following my plan of using stamps that have not seen ink ever or for a long time, I pulled out my new Wings of Friendship.

I colored the image with markers, misted with water and then stamped on hot press watercolor paper. I was beginning to sponge the edges of the background and realized that it probably had a white core, so I decided to sand instead. I left the sentiment off the front, as I realized that this would make and fabulous all occasion card. I’ll stamp something on the inside when I get ready to send it.

Stamps: Wings of Friendship from Stampin’ UP!
Paper: Arches Hot Pressed Watercolor; K&Company Classic K Bailey Mat Pad; SU Rich Razzleberry and Soft Suede
Ink: SU Markers Rich Razzleberry, Soft Suede and Bermuda Bay; Tombow Markers Avocado; Ranger Old Paper Distress
Accessories: Ranger Mini Mister; SU Ribbon, Eyelet Border Punch; Brands; Sanding Tools; Tsukineko Sponge Dauber; Venture Foam Tape

Here’s hoping you have a great day, and thanks for stopping by!

Time for Some Fun!

Misting with Markers, Penny Black, Rubbernecker, Spellbinders, Techniques, Tombow Marker 14 Responses »

Jul 112009

Oh my BADness! I have been so buried this week under paper, glitter and ink that I haven’t had time just to stamp. I’ve been getting ready for my part of the Spellbinders CHA Blog Frenzy that . . . well it’s like this . . . . I got last part of my projects done today, still have some more to do, but I just had to take a minute and clear my head.

I did something today that I haven’t done for a very long time. I pulled out my absolute favorite floral image of all time! For some of you, I don’t even have to show you the card and you’ll know the stamp. For some others, it’s been so long since I’ve put ink to this image that you’ve probably never seen anything I’ve done with it.

Are you ready? My Penny Black Blush stamp!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you haven’t been able to tell over the last bit, I love stamping on wet watercolor paper and today is no different. I misted the watercolor paper and let it sit for a few minutes to soak up the water. When the paper was just damp, I stamped Rubbernecker French Script in Old Paper Distress Ink. I let the ink sit for awhile, and then when I had the look I wanted, I finished drying with my heat tool. The flower was inked using Tombow Markers, misted with water and then stamped over the French Script. I felt the look of one single flower was lonesome, so I added 2 more . . . just for the fun of it! The image was then cut and embossed with Spellbinders S5-014 Small Deckled Mega Rectangles.

I chose BasicGrey Wisteria for the background papers and matched them up with Prism Iced Cobalt and Spring Willow Medium. The edges of everything, including the scalloped border, were sponged with Old Paper Distress Ink.

Stamps: Blush from Penny Black; French Script Background SKU:448 from Rubbernecker Stamps
Paper: BasicGrey Wisteria; Prism Iced Cobalt and Spring Willow Medium; Strathmore Watercolor
Ink: Ranger Old Paper Distress
Accessories: Spellbinders S5-014 Deckled Mega Rectangles, Small and S4-174 Petite 5-1/2” Deckled Scalloped Borderabilities; May Arts Ribbon; Tsukineko Sponge Dauber; Venture Foam Tape; Brads; Ranger Matte Accents and Mini Mister

I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend and thanks for stopping by!

The Day After!

Her Badness, Rubbernecker, Techniques, Tombow Marker, Watercolor, Wrinkle-Free Distress 14 Responses »

Jul 082009

Good Wednesday morning! How many of you spent the afternoon yesterday watching the Michael Jackson Memorial? I did! I sat on the couch, not getting up for anything . . . well maybe more coffee . . . and periodically a tear or two would roll down my cheek. I have to admit I was misty eyed.

Picture it – The South end of Louisville, Kentucky, 1968. There was a 10 year old girl who listened to only two radio stations, both of them AM – WAKY (the Top 40) and WTMT (Country). There was a Soul/R&B Station in town, but never listened to by this little girl. She didn’t know who the Temptations (or any of the Motown Stars) were. She did however know all about Elvis Presley, Bobby Sherman, the Beatles and of course Donnie Osmond and the Osmond Brothers. Then one day while listening to WAKY she heard a new song – ABC! Oh how she loved that song and became a fan of the group singing it. Her first 45 record was Help, then came Kentucky Rain and finally ABC! She played them on a little portable record player she won for selling Christmas cards at her elementary school. The little girl grew up, broadening her taste in music over the years, but she always remained a fan of the artistry and music by the King of Pop. That little girl was me and all that I could do yesterday was sit on the couch with weepy eyes! (And can you tell that someone is a huge fan of Golden Girls reruns)

Now that we’ve had our walk down memory lane, let’s get to the true reason for this post!

It’s Rubbernecker WACKY WEDNESDAY Challenge #19 and I’m the hostess today! My challenge to you and the Rubbernecker Red-Hot Mommas is a Color Challenge – – – pink, purple and green! You can find out all the details on the challenge and how to get your name in the drawing for a Certificate good for 40% off your next Rubbernecker Stamps order by visiting the Rubbernecker Blog.

When I first thought of these colors for the challenge, I actually had an idea in my head for what I wanted to do. The problem was that once I got the image finished, the paper I had picked out did not work as well as I thought. It took me longer to decided how to layout the card and the background that to color the darned image!

The image was embossed with gold embossing powder and then water colored with Tombow Markers. The edges of the image and all the background panels were sponged with Antique Linen. I used the Wrinkle Free Distress technique using Worn Lipstick, Shabby Shutters and Dusty Concord Distress Inks for the background panel. The top part of the card was punched with a scallop border punch and then folded over the background.

Stamps: Stamp Oasis Hearty Vase SKU:20 SO GM from Rubbernecker Stamps
Paper: Strathmore Watercolor; Prism Majestic Purple Medium and Vanilla Cream
Ink: Ranger Distress Embossing, Antique Linen, Worn Lipstick, Dusty Concord and Shabby Shutters
Accessories: Ranger Non-Stick Craft Sheet, Mini Mister, Queen’s Gold Embossing Powder; Venture Foam Tape; Tsukineko Sponge Dauber; May Arts Ribbon; Scallop Border Punch; Brads

By the way, we have some birthdays among the Red-Hot Mommas today. Candy and Jules both turn 40 today! Please stop by their blogs and wish them a Happy Birthday . . . I know they’ll love it! This one is for you girls!