Getting an Early Start

Over the past few years I've come to love orange and hot pink together, so when I saw the Just Us Girls challenge had this combo, I was highly motivated to play along. 

For some reason my first thought was Halloween and although I tried thinking of other themes, that thought persisted - so of course, eventually I gave in, lol. Here's what I ended up with.

Materials used:

• stamps - Unraveled (Tim Holtz), Gorgeous Grunge (Stampin' Up)
• dies - Trick or Treat colorize, Mischevious (both Tim Holtz)
• distress and distress oxide inks - spiced marmalade, picked raspberry, carved pumpkin
• other - Sidekick, MISTI, Dimensionals, blending brushes

I know it's early for Halloween craft but I am sooooooo in the mood for it this year! This is also being entered in the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge, which is Anything Goes.

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Comfort & Joy

I've been doing a bit of a clean up in my craft room and came across I card I made quite some time ago. At the time I couldn't decide whether or not I liked it, but today I decided yes I do, lol. I think I was experimenting with slightly non-traditional Christmas colours.

After so long I can't remember exactly what I used, but I'll try to give details as close as I can! There's a layer of something over the whole panel that gives it that soft, muted look and it's driving me crazy that I can't recall what I used! I THINK it was clear rock candy glitter, though it's not really glittery - but perhaps that's a 'been stashed away for ages' thing, lol. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Winter Watercolor 2 (Tim Holtz), Christmas Classics (Stampin' Up)
• other - stitched rectangle die, Big Shot, moon mask (Tim Holtz), blending brushes, MISTI, abandoned coral distress oxide ink, craft foam, Versamark ink, clear rock candy glitter (Tim Holtz), lost lagoon (retired) SU ink and cardstock

Hope you like it too! Thanks for dropping in.

Cheers

Kerry

Travel - Just Add Ink Challenge #708

It's a choose two option this week with Just Add Ink! Here's what we've got for you:

I chose blending and embossing, though I did end up - as so often happens with a choose two - using some of the third element as well, lol. 

My turquoise background piece is a blending of two inks, then I lightly applied some embossing ink through a stencil and added embossing glaze in a matching tone. The glazes are transparent, which was ideal when I was after more of a 'hint' of colour, rather than a full-on immersion. My globe was cut from card in my stash that had ink blending already and I added more blending around the edges of the continents to mimic the look of an atlas (for those of us old enough to remember what they are, lol). There are multiple layers to my airplane for extra depth and sturdiness. I chose a lowercase alphabet for 'travel' to contrast with the uppercase stamped sentiments.

Materials used:

• stamps - Tiny Text (Tim Holtz)
• dies - Vault World Travel (TH), Alphanumeric Tiny Type Lower (TH), stitched rectangle (Paper Rose)
• distress inks - salvaged patina, peacock feathers, wild honey, twisted citron
• other - compass stencil (Stamperia), salvaged patina distress glaze (TH), distress embossing dabber (TH), craft foam, MISTI, Dimensionals, Big Shot, blending brushes, heat tool

There are more samples to inspire you on the Just Add Ink blog and as always, we'd love to see your creations in our gallery.

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Happy Easter, Mr Rabbit

I'm sure you've probably met the very dapper Mr Rabbit already if you haunt blogs, Pinterest or social media like I do. He joined me a week or so ago but I have been saving him for closer to Easter and now it's almost here I happily sat and became acquainted with the gentleman. Here's how our first meeting went:

I began by stamping him on two pieces of Tim Holtz's specialty stamping paper so I could get the crispest, clearest image. One of those pieces became my background, which I sponged over with distress ink and did some stamping with other stamps from the set. The second piece I coloured using distress watercolour pencils then restamped - this brings back any detail lost because of the pigment from the pencils - before fussy cutting him out and attaching over the first piece. I die cut some eggs in different sizes then coloured those with distress inks, stamping dots over the top with oxide ink and sponging the edges. The plaid stamp was used on my base and then I assembled all my layers. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Mr Rabbit (Tim Holtz), Create Happiness - Elements (Stamperia)
• card - Distress specialty stamping paper (Tim Holtz), mossy meadow (Stampin' Up)
• dies - Nesting Eggs (Waffle Flower)
• other Tim Holtz products - distress inks, distress watercolour pencils, water brush, antique linen and vintage photo oxide ink, ground espresso archival ink, vintage photo archival ink
• other - blending foam tools, sponge dauber, Dimensionals, craft foam, mossy meadow ink (SU)

I'm entering this in the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge (Easter/Spring), Sunday Stamps #331 Easter Bounty (I used pink, yellow and brown), and Tic Tac Toe #243 (I used the top horizontal row - Easter eggs, yellow and free). 

 

Luckily there's still time for more meetings with Mr Rabbit before Easter is upon us, so I'd better get hopping! Thanks for moseying on by.

Cheers

Kerry

JAI #681 - Just Add Inspiration

We've a bright and cheerful image to spark your creativity this week at Just Add Ink.

I've been seeing quite a bit of pink and turquoise around on Christmas cards already this year, so I added the lime green and used those as inspiration for my own card.

I coloured my background piece first then added water splatters. While that dried I cut my greenery and coloured them using oxide inks, adding glossy accents and clear rock candy glitter to the berries. The sentiment was stamped using two inks and blended, then I used heat and stick powder to add glitter to that as well. You know how much I love white splatters, so they were the final touch - not meant to represent snow, just because they give that extra something, a bit of a zhuzh, lol. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Bold Tidings Mini (Tim Holtz)
• card - woodgrain (Tim Holtz), basic white, lemon lime twist
• distress oxide inks - spun sugar, kitsch flamingo, picked raspberry, twisted citron, mowed lawn, salvaged patina, peacock feathers, evergreen bough, uncharted mariner
• other - Big Shot, MISTI, craft foam, Dimensionals, blending brushes, Versmark ink, heat and stick powder, distress clear rock candy glitter, heat tool, paint brushes, white gesso, stitched frame die, Glossy Accents, Festive Gatherings thinlits (Tim Holtz)

What aspect of the image inspires you? We'd love to see your creation in our gallery and as always there's more inspiration for you over on the Just Add Ink blog.

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

JAI #676 - Just Add Inspiration

It's an inspiration challenge this week at Just Add Ink!

If you've been here lately you'll know I've been having tons of fun with some Halloween themed cards and more, so it will come as no surprise, I'm sure, that a pumpkin would conjure up more wicked fun in my head!

Cute as a ... well, as a pumpkin, lol. 

The layers are coloured with Copics and the spider webs were stamped with white pigment ink. The final touches to Edison were some googly eyes and tendrils of spagnum moss (which dropped dust everywhere, let me tell you! lol)

My daughter and a friend carved some jack o'lanterns over the weekend (she loves Halloween as much as me!) - here's a pic:

Materials used:

• stamps - Tiny Frights, Unravelled (both Tim Holtz)
• card - basic black, basic white, Halloween stripes (Etsy)
• dies - Edison colorize (Tim Holtz)
• Copic markers - YR04,YR07,YR09,YR14,YG25,G99,T10
• other - MISTI, white embossing powder, heat tool, picket fence distress ink, craft foam, Dimensionals, 7mm googly eyes

Check out what aspects of our mood board inspired my fellow team mates over on the Just Add Ink blog. 

Happy Halloween! and thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Ghostly Presents

I'm loving this week's theme at Inspired By challenges and couldn't resist playing along:

Here's my ghostly inspiration:

As you can see, I'm still loving some bright pink for Halloween! I ink smooshed the background and once it was dry, stamped the candy corn and sweets with oxide ink before white embossing my sentiment. The hats were coloured with markers and my finishing touches were some white gel pen and black stitching. I'm thinking I'm gonna need a second sewing machine for my cards so I can keep it set up and not have to change needles! (Mind you, threading the needle with a different coloured thread each time is a real challenge for my old eyes, so perhaps I need a number of machines, lol - one for each colour!)

Materials used:

• stamps - Tiny Frights (Tim Holtz)
• card - basic black, distress white heavystock, watercolour
• distress inks - kitsch flamingo spray stain, picked raspberry oxide ink and spray, cocktail party mica stain
• other - MISTI, white embossing powder, heat tool, Zig Clean Color brush markers, white gel pen, Dimensionals, craft foam, sewing machine and thread, scissors, embossing buddy

Thanks for calling in. Have a crafty day!

Cheers

Kerry

Hey Boo

When I saw this week's challenge theme at AAA Cards I was immediately keen to play along. 

Halloween is a perfect opportunity for some playfulness and fun and that's what I was after with my card.

The cobweb was embossed in white then I went over it with a glue pen and sprinkled liberally with clear rock candy glitter. Even the anti-static wipe can't keep some of those minuscule specks from sticking where they shouldn't, lol, but them's the breaks. Gotta love the shimmer though!

Materials used:

• stamps - Unravelled, Tiny Frights (both Tim Holtz)
• card - melon mambo, basic black (Stampin' Up), watercolour
• distress inks - dried marigold, carved pumpkin, worn lipstick, picked raspberry, picket fence
• other - white embossing powder, heat tool, MISTI, blending brushes, white gel pen, Edison colorize dies (Tim Holtz), craft foam, Dimensionals, banner punch (retired SU), Quickie glue pen, clear rock candy glitter (Tim Holtz)

When this die set was released, one of Tim Holtz's makers, Debi Adams, used the orange and pink combo and I fell in love with it, wanting to try it out ever since, so I'm happy now! 

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

JAI #673 - Just Choose Two

In the mood for crafting? At Just Add Ink this week we've our Choose Two option to inspire you.

I chose doors and windows for another decor piece. This project was very time intensive to make but extremely satisfying once completed.

The whole house was made from heavyweight black cardstock. Once I'd die-cut all the pieces, I spread grit paste randomly over the walls, allowed it to dry then dry-brushed with various distress paints. The marks on the window panes were made with a white gel pen to mimic cracks and cobwebs and there's semi-transparent plastic on the insides for glass. 

The grass is crypt paste coloured with reinker and all the leaves were adhered to the house using glossy accents and spread over the lawn while the paste was still wet. The thin threads are the string from a hot glue gun (how perfect are they?) and I grunged up the tiny jack o'lantern with some distress crayon. The same heavyweight card was used for the fence and for the sides of the box I created a kind of gothic wallpaper vibe by stamping a damask pattern and embossing in black. 

But the most fun part? It lights up!

As Tim Holtz would say, "tiny lights for the win!" lol.

This is not a large piece - the box measures just 12cm x 12cm and the mansion is about the same height. Fine-tip glue and squeezers (reverse tweezers) were definitely my friends, lol. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Damask (Tim Holtz)
• card - black mixed media heavyweight
• dies - Village Collection, Graveyard colorize (both Tim Holtz)
• distress paints - black soot, pumice stone, hickory smoke
• other - Big Shot, hot glue gun, distress grit paste opaque, distress grit paste crypt, rustic wilderness oxide reinker, spatula, white gel pen, artificial leaves and jack o'lantern (Temu), square vignette box (Tim Holtz), glossy accents, tiny lights clear (Tim Holtz), black embossing powder, heat tool, Sidekick, collage medium opaque

Check out what my team mates made using their two choices over on the Just Add Ink blog and, as always, we'd love you to join us by adding your creation to our gallery. 

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Boo

I've been seeing Halloween makes for a few weeks now and thought, "come on people, it's only July!" Now we're into August and I've been sucked into the vortex ... roflol. 

Saw a card that inspired the idea for the raised portions I've done here. Wasn't sure if it would work but I like it, I think the splintered vibe adds to the creepy ambience. 

I began with stamping the webs onto two pieces of black card and embossing with white, then cut one with the diamond die and stuck some of the shapes onto the other black piece. Once attached I spritzed with various oxide inks (dye inks won't show over black, you need the pigment) and also sprayed oxides onto watercolour card to use for my skeleton. The bats were cut from black gloss card and I bent their wings to give them some movement. When they catch the light they reflect other colours and look terrific.

There are two layers to the sentiment, as usual, as this adds more depth, and the background piece is watercolour card sponged with ink then spritzed. 

Materials used - all stamps, dies and inks are Tim Holtz unless otherwise noted:

• stamps - Unravelled 
• card - basic black, watercolour
• dies - Mr Bones, Toil & Trouble, Alphanumeric Theory
• distress oxide sprays - antique linen, frayed burlap, pumice stone, lost shadow
• other - white embossing powder, heat tool, Big Shot, MISTI, craft foam, Dimensionals, blending brush, Simply Diamonds die (Pink Fresh Studios)

Thanks for creeping by.

Cheers

Kerry

JAI #639 Just Add a Colour Combo

I do so love me some colour and the combo this week at Just Add Ink challenges is totally gorgeous!

For my mixed media slimline card I've created a watercolour effect with the challenge colours and added some neutrals of gold, black and cream.

I began with gold embossing the clocks then spritzed with water and used a paintbrush to add my colours, drying between layers. A little background stamping which I again spritzed. The butterflies were given a similar treatment and I used gold wax on the accent pieces and archival ink on the bodies. I've splattered with polished pink ink and white paint to tie all the elements together. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Welcome Home Clocks (Stamperia), Tiny Text (Tim Holtz), Clocks (Paper Rose), Entomology (Tim Holtz)
• card - watercolour, brushed gold, basic black, basic white
• inks - polished pink, Tahitian tide, orchid oasis, Versamark, black soot archival
• other - gold embossing powder, heat tool, water spritzer, MISTI, white embossing powder, paint brushes, picket fence distress paint, Brushstroke Butterflies dies (Tim Holtz), Big Shot, slimline stitched rectangle die (Paper Rose), Dimensionals, craft foam, vintage gold metallique wax (Art Alchemy)

Do pop over to the JAI blog to check out my team mates' creations and of course we'd love to see your own efforts in our challenge gallery.

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

JAI#637 - Just Add a Sketch

At Just Add Ink this week we have a sketch to challenge you.

When you've gone to the effort to hand make a card for someone, it's often nice to stamp a little on the envelope as well. But you can take that a step further and make the envelope an integral part of the art you create. Did you know mail/envelope art is a thing? (Give it a Pinterest search, you'll be amazed.) So when this sketch immediately made me think of the back of an envelope, I couldn't get the idea of envelope art out of my head - and you know what happens then, lol. It lingers and pesters and won't go away until I sit down at my craft desk to see if my idea will actually work...

Here's the back of my envelope (made from watercolour paper).

I continued the design to the inside section too (well, only the bit that shows, lol).

And here's the front.

I used stamps for the trees on the back but a die for the front, as I did the sun/moon higher up and the die is a bit taller. The whole thing has been sprayed with fixative so nothing can happen to smudge the inks. I added an area for the addressee's details so I wouldn't have to use a special marker (to write over the fixative) but now I think I need to brush up on my calligraphy skills so the name and address will look as good as the rest!

Materials used:

• stamps - Treeline (Tim Holtz), Birds (Lavinia Stamps)
• card - watercolour, basic black
• distress oxide inks - scattered straw, dried marigold, ripe persimmon
• other - corner rounder punch, Stamparatus, blending brushes, distress micro glaze, moon mask (TH), black soot archival ink, Treeline die (TH), workable fixative spray

Do head on over to the JAI blog to see what my fellow team mates did with this sketch, and thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

The Card Concept - Winter Cocoa or Winter Snow

Welcome to another challenge with The Card Concept! Being the second challenge of the month, we're giving you a choice of two wonderful inspirational images.

I picked the Winter Snow theme and used the optional colour palette on my mixed media card.

I began with stamping the house image then coloured using distress crayons. After embossing those gorgeous pine branches I sponged over them with white ink then liberally pounced over them with white distress crayon to give it more depth of colour plus more texture. Further white crayon was added to the roof and trees then everything was splattered with white distress paint. The edges were sponged and distressed.

With the crazy weather we've been having the past couple of months, somedays it feels like winter and on the days it doesn't, it's so hot and humid I wish it were! Lol. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Winterscape, Tiny Text Christmas (both Tim Holtz)
• card - baked brown sugar
• other TH products - picket fence distress ink and paint, pine branches 3D embossing folder, black soot oxide ink
• distress crayons - picket fence, walnut stain, squeezed lemonade, mowed lawn, forest moss
• other - clear embossing powder, heat tool, MISTI, craft foam, paintbrush, sponge dauber, Big Shot, distressing tool

We'd love to see your creation in our gallery and of course there are more cards to inspire you from my fellow team members over on the Card Concept blog. 

Thanks for dropping in.

Cheers

Kerry

The Card Concept - Christmas Greetings

Welcome to another challenge with The Card Concept. This week our inspiration pic is all about Christmas.

Aren't those luscious wreaths gorgeous? I took them as inspiration for my mixed media card.

I began with making my two background pieces, spraying heavy watercolour card with tumbled glass spray stain and winter frost mica stain, adding water and drying until I was happy with the result. Then I inked the edges lightly with walnut stain distress oxide ink. The mica stain gives the most glorious sheen! The smaller piece had vintage gold icing paste applied to it through the falling stars stencil and both pieces were stitched around the edges and matted on brushed gold. I cut two wreaths and layered them together for extra dimension, attaching the stamped vellum piece behind and mounting with foam. White Nuvo drops made the berries and were layered over both pine and holly leaves made from more watercolour sprayed with the green inks listed. The metallic adornment star was coloured with more of the vintage gold paste.

Materials used:

• stamps - Bold Tidings Mini (Tim Holtz)
• card - basic white, brushed gold, watercolour, vellum
• distress spray stains - forest moss, mowed lawn, rustic wilderness, peeled paint, vintage photo, walnut stain, frayed burlap, tumbled glass
• distress oxide sprays - rustic wilderness, mowed lawn, bundled sage, peeled paint, vintage photo, frayed burlap
• dies (all Tim Holtz) - funky wreaths, mini holiday greens
• other Tim Holtz products - winter frost mica stain, falling stars stencil, Idea-ology adornments stars, walnut stain and rustic wilderness distress oxide inks
• other - white embossing powder, heat tool, sewing machine, Dimensionals, craft foam, vintage gold icing paste and wax (Art Extravagance), Nuvo drops simply white

There's more samples to inspire you over on the Card Concept blog and of course we'd love to see your creations in our gallery.

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

A Lot Like Christmas

Over at Inspired By... challenges, they've got a gorgeous inspiration pic that caught my eye.

 

You can take anything from this for inspiration but they offer a sketch too, with the choice of incorporating it or not.

I love the colour combination in the picture so took those as my inspiration and decided to use the sketch as well for my mixed media whimsical Christmas card. 

  

I began with stencilling onto a piece of watercolour card using crackle texture paste and left it to dry overnight before spraying with the latest distress colour, lumberjack plaid, with both dye and oxide sprays. The blue plaid piece behind was stamped with salty ocean oxide ink then I used a marker and ruler to add the crimson stripes to the pattern. That adorable Santa image and the sentiment are from the Darling Christmas set. I stamped another plaid pattern on to the slide frame and once it was dry, covered it with embossing ink and sprinkled it with frosted crystal embossing powder. Santa was watercoloured then the inks protected with micro glaze - it's way too easy to smudge accidentally! I added a pop of green, mimicking the sprig of parsley in the picture with a small spray of holly leaves punched from scrap. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Darling Christmas, Perfect Plaids (both Tim Holtz)
• card - basic white, watercolour
• distress inks/sprays/oxides - lumberjack plaid, salty ocean, mowed lawn, vintage photo, black soot
• other - SU markers, Specimen die set (TH), stitched rectangle dies, Big Shot, waterbrush, clear embossing powder (SU), frosted crystal embossing powder (Ranger), heat tool, MISTI, crackle texture paste (TH), holly punch, craft foam, Holiday Script stencil (TH)

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Mixed Media Case-ing Heaven

I fell instantly in love the second I saw a card recently made by Tiffany Solorio and wanted to try recreating it. Luckily for me Tiffany put a tutorial on YouTube, so after watching it a couple of times I went to my craft room and got to work. 

I've made some changes from the original and of course when it comes to ink smooshing backgrounds, you can NEVER make exactly the same as someone else - or even yourself, roflol - so there are definite differences. But I had sooooooo much fun making it and am very happy with the outcome, and that's what matters.

Materials used:

• stamps - Entomology (Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous)
• card - basic white, heavy watercolour, vellum
• distress spray stains - antique linen, speckled egg, iced spruce, rusty hinge, crackling campfire
• distress oxide ink - speckled egg, antique linen
• distress paint - picket fence
• dies - Specimen, Brushstroke Butterflies (both Tim Holtz/Sizzix)
• other Tim Holtz products - mummy cloth, hardware heads, brickwork 3D embossing folder, mini cobblestone 3D embossing folder, ground espresso archival ink, water spritzer, Small Talk sticker
• fan paintbrush, heat tool, Big Shot, Dimensionals, sponge dauber, basic grey marker (SU), distressing tool, white embossing powder, Versamark ink

If you're interested, here's the link to Tiffany's tutorial.

I'm so grateful to makers who post videos or blog entries so I can learn from their experiences and try out new (to me) things, especially as I delve more into mixed media. I'm definitely doing as the sentiment says and going where my heart takes me. 

Do you like to learn that way? Would you prefer it if I gave detailed explanations of how my projects are made? I'd like to hear what you want to get from your visits here so please let me know in a comment. You're so quiet out there, lol!

Thanks for calling in. Have a crafty day!

Cheers

Kerry

Smile

Love the colours in the Hand Stamped Sentiments swatch this week so sat down and made a vintage/shabby card. 

I've gone with soft versions of highland heather and coastal cabana and just put pops of orchid oasis in (flower centres, corsages) as it's darker than the other colours and I didn't want it to overwhelm them. There are speckles of coastal cabana on both the tag and background paper as well. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Entomology (Tim Holtz)
• card - very vanilla (SU), sweet vintage digital junk journal (Etsy)
• distress oxide ink and spray - antique linen
• other - tag die, Big Shot, lace (SU), Bouquet flowers (TH), orchid oasis decorative dots, sponge dauber, craft foam, Dimensionals, distress tool, highland heather and orchid oasis Blends markers, BG34 Copic marker, mini paper dolls (TH), frosted crystal embossing powder (Ranger), heat tool

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry 

Ummm....

A clean and simple challenge caught my eye this week and I thought the optional twist sounded fun.

And here's my offering

Materials used:

• stamps - Stamptember 2020 (Tim Holtz)
• card - basic white, granny apple green
• Copic markers - E42,E43,Y21,Y32,G20,G40,G43,R05,R24,R27
• other - craft foam, blending brush, Sahara sand marker, MISTI, white gel pen

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Edited to add: I was lucky to have my card picked in the Top 3 for this challenge. Many thanks to the AAA Cards design team. 

With Brave Wings

When I saw the Color Throwdown swatch for this week I really wanted to play along and after not much consideration at all, realised I really, really wanted to get down and grungy with some mixed media. 

Naturally, I dug out my stuff and got to playing! Spritzing, speckling, crackling, sponging - oh my, what fun I had and although (as happens so often, lol) my card ended up different to what I had originally visualized, I am very happy with it. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Tiny Text (Tim Holtz)
• card - kraft, watercolour
• distress oxide inks - walnut stain, gathered twigs, crackling campfire
• distress spray stains - crackling campfire, gathered twigs, antique linen, frayed burlap
• distress oxide sprays - ground espresso, walnut stain, wild honey, fossilized amber, dried marigold, ripe persimmon
• distress paints - antique linen, walnut stain
• other TH products - Brushstroke Butterfly dies, distress crackle paste, splat box, water spritzer, Sidekick, gathered twigs distress crayon, ground espresso archival ink
• other - leaf die cuts (SU), blending brush, sponge daubers, MISTI, Dimensionals, stitched rectangle die, Big Shot, fan paintbrush, heat tool, early espresso marker (SU), ruler, baby wipe

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers

Kerry