In the Studio with Susan

Hi everyone.  Had a fun day yesterday in the studio with Susan.  She came over and brought some wonderful stamps, stains and different things to try.  She showed me how to make this watercoloured background using her distress stains on top of wet watercolour paper ... so pretty.  The branches and sentiment were stamped in versamark and embossed in white.  Some shabby embossing enamel was heat embossed along the bottom to add some chunky texture and sparkle; and more was sprinkled randomly around the rest of the card.  Thanks for showing me these wonderful and fun techniques Susan!!  And thanks for all the goodies you brought me ... I'm going to have so much fun playing! :)

Susan wanted me to show her how I do my watercolouring technique.  So we started with one of my favourite flower stamps for watercolouring ... the Poppies from Penny Black.  I know you've seen these many times before, but honestly, I never get tired of this image.

This is Susan's first watercoloured card using my technique.  She really had fun with this and it turned out beautifully.  Susan did a second watercolour (poinsettia) that she will share soon in her SCS gallery (susanbri on Splitcoast Stampers).

Susan's poppies ...

Great job Susan!! :)

Joyful Christmas

Hi everyone.  CAS Christmas card using a new stamp set I just got.  Love this wreath.  Stamped it in black and then used distress inks to add colour with a waterbrush (no watercolour paper this time).  Fussy-cut the wreath, coated with clear wink of stella, and added glossy accents to the berries.  Stamped a simple sentiment to finish.

Quick and easy.

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Just a reminder that the "Twelve Tags of Christmas" Event starts Nov. 3, right here on this blog.  Hope you'll join us!

Stamps:  Joyful (STAMPlorations); Christmas Sampler (Paper Smooches)
Paper:  White (Neenah)
Ink:  Black (Memento); Distress inks:  Mowed Lawn, Barn Door (Tim Holtz)
Accessories & Tools:  water brush, glossy accents

Thank you Vicki

Hi everyone.  Sharing another watercoloured card ... this one was sent to my friend Vicki (All I Do is Stamp).

This is a CASE (copy and share everything) of Vicki's beautiful card HERE.  I just love the design and gorgeous colours on Vicki's card and wanted to give it a try. Thank you for inspiring me Vicki!

Stamps:  Bloom Sketches (STAMPlorations); Sentiment Builders Thank You (STAMPlorations)

Paper:  White card base (Neenah); Watercolor (Arches 140 lb. cold press)
Ink:  Archival Black - waterproof (Ranger); Crumb Cake, Old Olive, Always Artichoke, Regal Rose, Melon Mambo (SU!)
Accessories & Tools:  waterbrush, water mister, heat tool, paint brush for splattering

Sparkly Holly

Hi everyone.  Sharing another Christmas card today.  This one started out completely different in my mind than what I ended up with ... I'm sure that's happened to you too.

I bought some new crackle embossing paste and couldn't wait to try it out.  I had this beautiful holly stencil from my friend Susan (thanks Susan!), and so layered the stencil over my white base and added the paste.  Nothing happened ... it dried, still no crackles.  So I read the container ... something I usually never do :)  Takes 2-3 days for the cracks to show up ... really??!! :)  So set aside and ignored it for a while.  Turns out that after several hours (but the same day I made it), the cracks did start to appear.  And they were large cracks, which I really liked.  I placed the stencil back over the paste and sponged on some distress ink.

LOVE the colour ... but the bright, vibrant green didn't look that great with the cracks.  I added a layer of green glitter glue on top.  Now the holly is all sparkly ... you can see a few of the cracks, but it's mostly about the sparkle.  That's OK, I like the way this looks.  The bright green and red are so happy. :)

Next time I would just use regular paste ... I'll save the crackle for when I want to do an aged look.  Always learning. :)

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Wanted to also mention that my good friend, Kylie (Kylie is Addicted to Stamps), made me this fabulous watermark file for my photos ... along with a matching signature file for my blog posts.  Thank you so much Kylie ... absolutely LOVE them! :)

Kylie is now selling this service to others ... so if you're interested in getting your own specially-designed watermark, check out the badge below and contact Kylie at kyliepurtell@gmail.com.

Stamps:  Handy Christmas Greetings (Amy R)

Paper:  White (Neenah)
Ink:  Distress inks:  Mowed Lawn, Barn Door (Tim Holtz); Black (Memento)
Accessories & Tools:  Holly metal stencil (Dreamweaver), embossing paste, palette knife, green glitter glue, red glitter glue

Christmas Candles and Upcoming Tag Event

Hi everyone.  I'm on a roll with watercolouring and Christmas ... this time I used a beautiful new stamp from STAMPlorations called Holiday Sketches: Christmas Candles.  I did the background first, pouncing my watercolour paper into diluted Mustard Seed Distress Ink.  Just used the one colour for this background.

The candles were stamped in waterproof black ink and then watercoloured in Distress inks.  I added a little Wink of Stella to the flames for some shimmer, but it doesn't show in the photo.  A large sentiment (from the same stamp set) and red metallic cording finish the card.

Stamps:  Holiday Sketches: Christmas Candles (STAMPlorations)
Paper:  White card base (Neenah);  Watercolour (Arches 140 lb. cold press)
Ink:  Black Archival (Ranger); Distress Inks:  Mustard Seed, Crushed Olive Peeled Paint, Barn Door, Fired Brick, Aged Mahogany (Tim Holtz)
Accessories & Tools:  water brushes, water mister, heat tool, wink of stella, red metallic cording

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I have some exciting news to share today.  In one week (Nov. 3), there will be a tag event starting on my blog ... "The Twelve Tags of Christmas" will be running from Nov. 3 - 14.  I will be posting two mixed media Christmas tags each day ... one made by me, and one made by a very talented guest designer.  I hope you'll follow along and be inspired to join us.  The more the merrier!! :)

There will be a linky set up for two weeks so you are welcome to join in with your mixed media Christmas tags.  Hope to see you in the gallery ... event starts in seven days ... can't wait! :)

Happy Birthday Shirley!

Hi everyone.  Today' we are celebrating Shirley's birthday (shirley-bee's stamping stuff).  I made a very CAS card highlighting one of Shirley stamps from her new line, called Rosebuds (sold at STAMPlorations).  Love this sweet little rose! :)

Shirley, hope you have a wonderful birthday and that this linky party brings you even more joy!! :)

I stamped the large sentiment in black and then stamped the rosebud (also in black), curving it to fit around the sentiment ... that's one of the great things about the clear stamps, so easy to manipulate! :)  I colored the rose with Copics and added a shimmery coating with my clear Wink of Stella pen.

I then placed a mesh stencil over top and sponged on some yellow distress inks to give the card some sunshine! :)

Thanks to Maria for setting up this wonderful linky party for Shirley.  If you want to join in, the link will be open for a couple of weeks on Maria's blog (reislingmama).  I hope you'll join in!

Stamps:  Rosebuds (The Bees Knees); The big the bold and the happy (Winnie & Walter)
Paper:  White (Neenah)
Ink:  Mustard Seed Distress Inks (Tim Holtz); Copics:  Y07, R17
Accessories & Tools:  Textured mesh stencil (Memory Box), sponge, clear Wink of Stella

Thank you Deepti

Hi everyone.  Sharing another watercolored card ... this one was sent to my friend Deepti (Dee's Art Utopia).  She has now received the card, so I'm sharing with you :)

I used Stampin' Up! inks again for this watercolour ... and their poppy stamp as well.  I've been getting lots of experience with the watercolouring and I'm really enjoying this technique. :)

Stamps:  Pleasant Poppies (SU!); Sentiment Builders Thank You (STAMPlorations)
Paper:  White card base (Neenah); Watercolor (Arches 140 lb. cold press)
Ink:  Archival Black - waterproof (Ranger); Crumb Cake, Old Olive, Always Artichoke, Pumpkin Pie, Tangerine Tango, Cajun Craze (SU!)
Accessories & Tools:  waterbrush, water mister, heat tool, paint brush for splattering

Thank you Susan

Hi everyone.  Here's a watercoloured card I sent to my good friend, Susan.   She has already received the card, so I'm sharing with you. :)

This card uses the Stampin' Up! inks again.  Love the variety of shades of pink for coloring the roses.  Had lots of fun moving the ink around the background with my fingers. :) 

Stamps: Roses (Rubber-Art Stamps); Lots of Thanks (Simon Says)
Paper:  White card base (Neenah); Watercolor (Arches 140 lb. cold press)
Ink:  Archival Black - waterproof (Ranger); Crumb Cake, Old Olive, Always Artichoke, Regal Rose, Primrose Petals, Raspberry Ripple (SU!)
Accessories & Tools:  waterbrush, water mister, heat tool, paint brush for splattering

Vintage Candles

Hi everyone.  Just a reminder that there's only a few days left to join in the Mixed Media Card Challenge (#4 - Vintage with optional element: key).  The challenge closes on Oct.. 25.

This has a lot going on for me :)  I stamped the background with some text and then sponged over top with distress ink, using a darker shade to sponge the edges.  I placed my harlequin stencil over top and sponged more ink and then coated it with glass bead gel ... hard to see in the photo, but the diamonds are very shiny and reflective.

I stamped the candles, fussy-cut and then coloured with Copics.  I added a little glitter to the flames to make them sparkle.  A sentiment was stamped in dark brown at the top to finish the card.

I hope you'll find some time to play along with the challenge if you haven't already done so.  Lots of inspiration in the gallery --- come check it out!!  :)

Stamps:  Holiday Sketches: Christmas Candles (STAMPlorations); Dictionary, Bells & Boughs (both from SU!)
Paper:  White (Neenah)
Ink:  Antique Linen, Brushed Corduroy, Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain (Tim Holtz Distress); Copics
Accessories & Tools:  Sponges, Silhouette Cameo for cutting stencil, harlequin cut file, plastic sheet, glass bead gel, dazzling details

Holly Jolly Christmas

Hi everyone.  Today is the newest challenge at ATS&M (#118 - Holiday).  I focused on Christmas so I could get another card made for my stash :) ...

This challenge is being sponsored by

I had fun making this card ... I am loving my distress inks and started out by blending my favorite combination for the background (Antique Linen and Brushed Corduroy).  I stamped over top with a new-to-me stamp from Penny Black, called Christmas Story.  Love it!!  I die-cut three holly leaves, sponged ink around the outside edges to add interest, coated them with green glitter glue, and then shaped them with my stylus and mat to give them some dimension.  Three red glitter balls were added for the berries and a simple sentiment banner finishes the card.

I hope you'll join at ATS&M for our "holiday" challenge.  Please click HERE to check out the challenge and to see the beautiful cards from the rest of the Design Team.  I hope you'll be inspired to play along with us! :)

Stamps:  Christmas Story (Penny Black); Christmas Sampler (Paper Smooches)
Paper:  White (Neenah); Old Olive (SU!)
Ink:  Distress inks:  Antique Linen, Brushed Corduroy (Tim Holtz); Real Red (SU!)
Accessories & Tools:  Sponges, Holly die-cut (C.C. Designs), red glitter balls

Snowy Christmas

Hi everyone.  It's time for a new challenge at Addicted to CAS.  This one is being hosted by our very talented and fun-loving, Marie (bailey rosy) ... and she chose this wonderful code word ...

This challenges is sponged by

Prize:  3 digital images

I started out by sponging two colours of Distress inks on vellum for the misty sky. Diluted white acrylic paint was splattered over top for the falling snow.  I printed off a fun digital image of a snowman, but he seemed too solid white to go with the background, so I printed it off again onto vellum and layered it on top of the white snowman ... love how he has a bit of a misty look as well.  His nose and scarf are coloured with Copics, and dots from a white gel pen decorate the scarf.  Easy, peasy card.

I loved the look of the sponged sky on vellum so much that I had to make a second card :)  This time making it more elegant with a snowy hillside scene and lots of glitter.

Hannelie is again joining us as our Guest Designer at ATCAS.  Click HERE to check out her amazing vellum design, along with the fabulous vellum cards from the rest of the Design Team.

The challenge is open for two weeks so there's lots of time to join in the fun! :)


I'm entering this into the fabulous challenge at Merry Monday (#130 - Silent Night). It is being run by LeAnne and she picked a gorgeous inspiration photo ... and I think my second vellum card works well for the challenge.

Smiling Snowman:

Stamps:  Smiley Snowman (Sweet 'n Sassy);  Winter Chuckles (C.C. Designs)
Paper:  White (Neenah);  Vellum (Bazzill - 40 lb.)
Ink:  Broken China, Peacock Feathers (Tim Holtz); Smoky Slate (SU!); Copics
Accessories & Tools:  Sponges, paint brush for splattering, white acrylic paint, Rectangle Nestabilities (Spellbinders)white gel pen

Snowy Hillside:
Stamps:  Holiday Sketches: Christmas Flower - sentiment only (STAMPlorations)
Paper:  White (Neenah); Vellum (Bazzill - 40 lb.)
Ink:  Broken China, Peacock Feathers (Tim Holtz); Smoky Slate
Accessories & Tools:  Sponges, paint brush for splattering, white acrylic paint, Rectangle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), dazzling details (SU!); Fir Tree border die (impression Obsession); Modern Landscape die (Memory Box)

Challenges:
Merry Monday #130

Thank you Julia

Hi everyone.  Here's another watercoloured card ... this one was sent to my friend Julia.  She has now received the card, so I'm sharing it with you.  :)  I think I'm about half way done in posting the twelve thank you cards that I sent to friends, so lots more to come. :)  Hope you're not sick of seeing watercolouring ...

Here's a different way to use stencils.  I had this metal stencil that I bought years ago and don't think it's ever been used.  I traced the design onto watercolor paper in light pencil; then took a permanent marker to draw in the flowers, joining up the petals so there was no break between them (the stencil has gaps).  I erased the light pencil markings, watercoloured the flowers and splattered the background.  I then fussy-cut along the bottom of the image and mounted the panel onto a white card base.

Here's the stencil I used ...

Stamps:  Lots of Thanks (Simon Says
Paper:  White card base (Neenah); Watercolor paper (Arches 140 lb. cold press)
Ink:  Antique Linen, Spiced Marmalade, Worn Lipstick, Mustard Seed, Crushed Olive, Peeled Paint; Black (Memento)
Accessories & Tools:  Hibiscus stencil (Dreamweaver), pencil, eraser, permanant fine tip black pen (Sharpie), water brush, water mister, paint brush for splattering, heat tool, white gel pen

Thank you Bonnie

Hi everyone.  Here's another watercoloured card ... this one was sent to my dear friend Bonnie (Stamping with Klass).  She has already received the card, so I'm sharing with you. :)

Bonnie is a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, so I thought I'd use a SU! stamp for her card.  And I used SU! inks as well ... they work great on my watercolour paper.  I used red for the flowers to give it a punch of colour for these pretty SweetBriar Roses.

Stamps:  Sweetbriar Rose (SU!); Sentiment Builders Thank You (STAMPlorations)
Paper:  White card base (Neenah); Watercolor (Arches 140 lb. cold press)
Ink:  Archival Black - waterproof (Ranger); Crumb Cake, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive, Always Artichoke, Real Red, Cherry Cobbler (SU!)
Accessories & Tools:  waterbrush, water mister, heat tool, paint brush for splattering

Vintage Bells

Hi everyone.   Here's another vintage Christmas card.  This time I heat embossed the bells in black onto white cardstock, sponged the bells brown and then coated them with Twinkling H2O's that were gifted to me by my friend Susan.  Thanks Susan!!  First time using them ... I used the colour called Scarab Beetle (interesting name!) ... it's bronze with a slight greenish tone.  I love how the bells turned out ... an antique bronze colour.  I used Copics to color the ribbon.

I found this vintage-y designer paper with musical notes and script writing and used it for the background, just adding a little sponging around the edges to give it even more of an aged look, and tearing the edge.  A simple sentiment stamped at the bottom finishes the card.

Just a reminder that the Mixed Media Card Challenge (#4 - Vintage with optional element: key) is open until Oct. 25, so still lots of time to play.  Come join in the fun! :)

I'm entering this into the STAMPlorations October Challenge - Stamps and Embossing.

Stamps:  Holiday Sketches:  Christmas Bells, and Holiday Sketches: Christmas Candles - sentiment only (STAMPlorations)
Paper:  White (Neenah); So This is Christmas DSP (Carta Bella)
Ink:  Crumb Cake, Early Espresso (SU!); Black (Memento); Versamark; Copics; Twinkling H2Os
Accessories & Tools:  Black embossing powder, heat tool, sponges, brush

Challenges:
STAMPlorations - October

Thank you Kylie

Hi everyone.  Back with another watercoloured card.  This card was sent off to my good friend Kylie (Kylie is Addicted to Stamps) and she has now received it, so I'm sharing with you. :)

I've used distress inks again for this card ... they are so easy to work with and I love the saturated colors.

I'm going to enter this into a few challenges ... Simon Says - Use Watercolours; Time Out #16 (CASE Heather Telford with your own twist) (I changed from leaves to flowers); and AAA Cards #24 - autumn colours.

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Yesterday, my good friend Frances joined me in the studio.  I showed her how to do my watercolouring technique, using the Penny Black poppies image that I have done many times before.  Below is Frances's first watercoloured card ... she did AMAZING!! :)

Fran's card

Stamps:  Daisy Thanks (Stampendous); Lots of Thanks (Simon Says)
Paper:  White card base (Neenah); Watercolor (Arches 140 lb. cold press)
Ink:  Distress Inks:  Crushed Olive, Peeled Paint, Spiced Marmalade, Ripe Persimmon, Fired Brick, Aged Mahogany, Antique Linen, Brushed Corduroy; Archival Black - waterproof (Ranger)
Accessories & Tools:  waterbrush, water mister, heat tool, paint brush for splattering

Challenges:
Simon Says - use watercolours
Time Out#16
AAA Cards #24

Two More Poinsettias

Hi everyone.  Back with two more poinsettia cards.  But before I get into the cards, I wanted to take this opportunity to wish all my Canadian followers ... A Happy Thanksgiving!!

We had our family Thanksgiving dinner last night with turkey and all the trimmings. And we (me, hubby, Evan, Nikki, Cooper, Jer and Alex) were joined by my mom and a friend of Jer's.  Lots of fun, lots of laughs, good food ... good time :)  Tonight I have the night off from making dinner ... hubby and I will be having turkey sandwiches (yum, yum!). :)

Later this morning, I'm going to be joined by my dear friend Frances.  We are spending the day making cards using my watercolouring techniques.  It's going to be fun!!

Now on to the card ... The background is randomly embossed with some paste using a mesh stencil ... just to add a bit of texture and interest.  The long panel is sponged with distress inks and then over-stamped in red.  And the poinsettia is watercoloured, fussy-cut and then gold liquid pearls added to the center.

I'm entering this into the current challenge at STAMPlorations October Challenge - Stamps and Embossing.

While I was at it ... I made two :) ... just changed up the colours.

And I'm entering this into the current challenge at Jingle Belles - It's a pink Christmas (second entry).

Stamps:  Holiday Sketches: Christmas Flower; Vignette: Christmas Block (STAMPlorations
Paper:  White (Neenah); Watercolour (Arches 140 lb. cold press)
Ink:  Red Poinsettia card:  Real Red (SU!); Distress Inks:  Antique Linen, Brushed Corduroy, Barn Door, Fired Brick, Aged Mahogany.  Pink Poinsettia card:  Shabby Shutters, Peeled Paint, Spun Sugar, Worn Lipstick, Aged Mahogany
Accessories & Tools:  Textured Mesh stencil (Memory Box), embossing paste, palette knife, sponges, water brushes, heat tool, gold liquid pearls, silver stickles, black liquid pearls

Challenges:
STAMPlorations - October
Jingle Belles - Pink Christmas

Two Sparkly Poinsettias

Hi everyone.  More watercolours :) ... and more fun using supplies from my friend Susan ... thanks Susan!! :)  I borrowed her beautiful poinsettia stamp, inked it in versamark and heat embossed in white (twice).  I then watercoloured it using distress inks.  I splattered on top to give this a bit of visual texture.  Gold stickles were added to the center for some sparkle.  And I used my clear Wink of Stella pen to add glitter to the frame and also down the center of each petal (I'll show you a close-up below with the second version of this card).

The second poinsettia is watercoloured in shades of pink (again using distress inks).  I didn't splatter the background of this one ... leaving it smoother ... and also did the background inside the frame the same way.  Gives it a different look, don't you think??!!

Clear Dazzling details (clear glitter glue from SU!) were added to the center for some sparkle and dimension.  And as with the above card, I added clear Wink of Stella to the frame and also down the center of each petal.  I think it makes it really interesting rather than coating the whole flower.

Here's a close-up so you can see the shimmer a bit better (it's so sparkly IRL) ...

I'm entering these into Virginia's View Challenge #8 - CAS (third entry) ... and the pink one into the Jingle Belles - It's a Pink Christmas.

Just saw that the latest challenge at CAS on Sunday #44 is "Emboss it"!.  So I'm entering the above cards!

Stamps:  Poinsettia (Stamp Oasis); Joy sentiment (from the $1 bin at Michael's ... no manufacturer listed)
Paper:  White card base (Neenah); Watercolour (Arches 140 lb. cold press)
Ink:  Antique Linen, Brushed Corduroy +  (Red Poinsettia:  Barn Door, Fired Brick, Aged Mahogany), (Pink Poinsettia:  Spun Sugar, Worn Lipstick, Aged Mahogany); versamark
Accessories & Tools:  White embossing powder, heat tool, water mister, water brushes, paint brush for splattering, gold stickles, dazzling details, clear Wink of Stella

Challenges:
Virginia's View #8
Jingle Belles - Pink Christmas
CAS on Sunday #44