Winter Sky

Hi everyone.  I can't believe we are into fall and Christmas is not long away.  It's the start of the Happy Little Stampers October Sketch Challenge, and this month I made a Christmas card to add to my stash. :)

Here's the sketch ...

This challenge is sponsored by

Plus

I tried a new-to-me technique called Floating Alcohol Inks to make this background. I actually took an afternoon to experiment a while back and made about 20 different backgrounds in just minutes. :)  The biggest time is waiting for the card stock to dry! :)  This is one of those "you get what you get" types of techniques.  The inks float in the water and then you dip your card and you never know what you're going to get. I love the randomness of it.

To me, the colour combination and pattern above looked like a cold winter sky, perfect for my sketch card. :)  And I had another background which was similar, but had a bit of darker blue added (almost looks like the northern lights to me), so I made a second card with the same design.  I'm going to keep one for myself, and the other will be donated. :)

We are excited to have our very first Guest Designer for the Sketch challenge.  A warm welcome to Valentyna (Flourishtina).  We're so happy to have you with us this month for the sketch challenge!  Please click HERE to check out Valentyna's amazing sketch card, along with the cards from the rest of our very talented Design Team members.  I'm sure you'll be inspired to join in the fun.

Hope to see you in the gallery!

Thanks for stopping by.

Stamps:  Mixed Christmas Sentiments (Happy Little Stampers)

Paper:  White (Neenah); Mixed Media (Strathmore)
Ink:  Alcohol inks: Botanical and Mermaid (Ranger)
Accessories & Tools:  Country Landscape die (Memory Box); Dazzling Details glitter glue (SU!)

Challenges:

HLS October Sketch

Smooshing in the Studio

Hi everyone.  Yesterday I spent the day in my studio with two crafty friends, Debbie and Frances.  We used to work together and have know each other for over 30 years ... where does the time go??!!

I showed them the smooshing technique using different papers (watercolour, mixed media) and two mediums (distress ink, inka gold wax paste).  We made a bunch of backgrounds and found time for each of us to make six cards, as well as having many backgrounds left over to make into cards later.  So fun!

Above is one I made die-cutting an inka gold smooshed background.  Love the soft and shimmery colours.

Frances mention that it was a shame to throw away the leftover background with the leaves cut out from it, so I showed her and Debbie how to create an inlaid die-cut card ... a "twofer" as Darnell would say! :)

I hope you have a fun and inky day!!  Thanks for dropping by for a visit!!  I always love hearing from you. :)

Stamps:  Just for You sentiment (Butterfly Birthday set from Happy Little Stampers); Thinking of you sentiment (A Little Sentimental stamp set from Clearly Besotted)

Paper:  White card base (Neenah); Mixed Media (Stratmore)
Ink:  Smoky Slate (SU!)
Accessories & Tools:  Inka Gold in Jade, Steel Blue and Platinum), water mister, Fresh Foliage die-cut (Memory Box)

Life is ART, Paint your DREAMS

Hi everyone.  Time for a new challenge at Addicted to CAS.

This challenge is being hosted by the very talented Ksenija (Sweet Kobylkin). She chose this fabulous code word ...

This challenge is sponsored by

I thought an "artsy" design was fitting for this large sentiment which is the main focal point of the card.  I sponged light blue over a mesh stencil for the background, and then used two different splat stamps to add more interest in lime green and bright blue.  Then I stamped the sentiment in the same bright blue to finish the card.  Easy and quick card to make.

This month, we are excited to have Dawn (Designs by Dragonfly) as our Guest Designer.  Please click HERE to see Dawn's amazing Dream card ... and the cards from the rest of the very talented Design Team.  I know you'll be inspired to join in.

Come join in the fun!  Make a CAS (clean and simple) card that shows your interpretation of "Dream" and link to our challenge.  Hope to see you in the gallery.

Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps:  Life is Art (Stampendous); Gorgeous Grunge (SU!)

Paper:  White (Neenah)
Ink:  Distress Inks:  Broken China, Twisted Citron, Mermaid Lagoon (Tim Holtz)
Accessories & Tools:  Textured Mesh stencil (Memory Box)

Challenges:

ATCAS #73 - Dream

Happy Birthday Nancy!

Hi everyone.  Today is a special birthday for a very special friend of mine. :)  Happy Birthday Nancy!!  Hope you have a WONDERFUL day!  xx

I know she loves watercoloured cards, so I made this using a stamp set I hadn't inked before.  It was fun to pull out something new (to me) and play.  I masked off the section for my sentiment first.  Then I inked the leaf stamps with two shades of green Zig Clean Colour Real Brush markers.  I misted with water and then stamped onto my card front (mixed media paper).  Then I used my Stamp-a-ma-jig to position the flower stamp into place, removed it, inked it with orange and pink Zigs, spritzed with water and stamped.  I removed the mask and stamped my sentiment. I thought it needed something more, so use a black sharpie to add the two lines with a ruler, and a few dots on the flowers. :)

Last week I received my latest Simon Says Stamp order in the mail.  I shared this on Facebook a few days ago, but wanted to add it here too! :)  I've already started using some of my new toys ... cards will be posted soon! :)

Thanks for coming by for a visit!

Stamps:  Painted Petals (SU!); Butterfly Birthday sentiment (Happy Little Stampers)

Paper:  White card base (Neenah); Mixed media paper (Strathmore)
Ink:  Zigs, Black (Memento)
Accessories & Tools:  water mister, water brush, fine black sharpie, masking tape

Snowy Winter Night

Hi everyone.  Today I'm sharing another Christmas card.  This one has a Smooshed background made with diluted Inka Gold wax paste.  I simply dabbed a small bit of three colours of Inka Gold (jade, steel blue, platinum) onto my craft mat and spritzed with a little water.  Then I dropped a small panel of mixed media paper on top.  I pressed down to pick up the colour, and repeated until I was happy with the layers of colour.  I LOVE working with Inka Gold ... it has a metallic finish and so there's a lot of shimmer and shine to this card (which is hard to see in the photo).

I stamped the snowy trees on top in Versamark ink and heat embossed in white.  I die-cut two snow drifts, and layered them at the bottom, stamping the sentiment in soft gray.

I'm playing along with this week's Merry Monday Challenge #172 - use watercolouring on your card).  I love watercolouring and watercolouring techniques ... so I just HAD to play along! :)

Also, Addicted to Stamps & More is looking for holiday cards this time, so I'm joining in there.

And I used snippets of white card stock to make my snowdrifts, so I'm heading over to the Snippets Playground for some fun! :)

That's it from me today.  Hope you are all having a great week.  And thanks so much for taking the time to stop by for a visit! :)

Stamps:  Snow Dust (Penny Black); Handy Christmas Sentiments (Amy R)

Paper:  White (Neenah), Mixed Media (Strathmore)
Ink:  Smoky Slate (SU!); Versamark
Accessories & Tools:  Inka Gold Wax paste in Jade, Steel Blue and Platinum (Viva Decor), water mister, white embossing powder (Hero Arts), heat tool, Snowdrift dies (My Favorite Things)

Challenges:

Merry Monday #172
ATS&M #163 - Holidays
Snippets Playground - Week 195

Happy Little Stampers Blog Hop

Happy Little Stampers are celebrating the first release of their stamps with a

blog hop!

I'm so happy to be a part of the Happy Little Stampers Design Team.  And I'm excited to be sharing some cards I've made with the fantastic first release.

Comment on the HLS Blog and then continue on to each Designer.

You must comment on all the blogs in the hop to be eligible for prizes.

Here's the order:
Happy Little Stampers

Kylie Purtell

Loll Thompson (you are here!)

Linda Walmsley

LesLee Stone-Rasmus

Gail Townsend

Gloria Lee

Ingrid Blackburn

Birgit Norton

Melissa Lane

Sue Trembeth

Anita Bowden

Carol Steedman

Carol Dunham

Susan Bridgman

Bonnie Klass

Valentyna Komisarenko

You should have come to me from Kylie's blog.  If you've missed something, just go to the HLS Blog to start and you'll find your way.

The blog hop will run for one week giving you enough time to hop through and check out what the designers have created.

GRAND PRIZE

One lucky commenter (selected randomly) will win the whole release!
That's four sets of stamps with a value of AUD$69.

MORE PRIZES

Four lucky commenters (selected randomly) will win a gift certificate
to the HLS Store!

My cards using Butterfly Birthday stamp set.

For the card above, I used brushos on mixed media paper, stamped the butterfly, and then picked up more brushos with a brush to darken the butterfly wings.

For the card above, I used the paper from SU! that comes already embossed with a leaf design (how easy is that!). :)  I simply sponged a little over the center and popped up my liquid platinum embossed and fussy-cut butterfly which I had coloured with two shades of blue ink.

For the card above, I sprayed my watercoloured paper background with yellow, orange and pink.  Once dry, I flicked on some diluted Inka Gold and stamped the dots in the background in black.  The butterfly was cut from the same watercoloured paper, stamped in black and fussy-cut.

Next up are my cards using Mixed Christmas Sentiments stamp set.

For the card above, I die-cut the candles twice, once in gold foil paper and once in gold glimmer paper and inlaid the pieces.  The sentiment is stamped in versamark and heat embossed in gold.  Love the elegant script of this HLS sentiment!

For this card, I used brushos for the background and added glitter for sparkle to the snowy hills and houses.  I framed the card and added this beautiful HLS sentiment in soft gray.

I had fun making this card.  I LOVE the song jingle bells and thought that creating a Christmas tree from them would be cute. :)  

And here are my cards using the Bold Birthday Sentiments stamp set.

For this card, I used my cameo to cut out the balloon, sponged with twisted citron ink and stamped blue stars.  I coated the balloon in Versamark and heat embossed with iridescent ice powder.  So fun pairing the balloon with the fun font of the HLS birthday sentiments.

For this card I used stencil monoprint technique with brown and blue watercolour sprays for the background.  I combined a few of the different sentiments from the HLS birthday sentiments to come up with a sentiment that fit the design.  These sentiments are so versatile!

For this card I used two shades of green watercolour sprays for the background and once dry, placed a geometric stencil over top and sprayed with water, blotted to remove the excess and leave a design.  I stamped the birthday sentiments and added a fussy-cut butterfly.

I hope I have inspired you today with my cards.  The designers and I have had so much fun playing with these stamps!  I LOVE the images and sentiments, and the quality of the stamps is awesome!

  Next you need to hop over to Linda's blog.

September Challenge Reminders

Hi everyone.  Just a reminder that we are half way through the Happy Little Stampers September Challenges.  We have three challenges running this month ... CAS - Colouring, Sketch, and Christmas - Holly.

I have made a card for the CAS and Christmas challenges to share with you today.

First, my CAS Challenge - Colouring card ...

I used the Watercolour Spritz Technique (that's what I call it) to colour my flowers.  I coloured the stamp with water-based markers, spritzed with water and then stamped onto mixed media paper.  This is the first time I've inked up with stamp ... so I'm heading over to join the fun at the latest NBUS Challenge.

Next, is a card for the Christmas Challenge - Holly.

I have created a CAS Christmas card that I made in only a few minutes ... gotta love that! :)  I used a beautiful holly sprig die-cut that I borrowed from my friend Susan (Cardmaker's Garret).  I die-cut the sprig in soft green paper and again in white, gluing them together to make a sturdy die-cut.  I added a few red rhinestones for the berries, and then stamped the sentiment in soft green ink to finish the card. Easy, peasy and oh-so quick! :)

I hope you'll join us for these fun challenges.  Our Guest Designer for HLS CAS, Riti (A Lil Piece of Heaven) has made another beautiful coloured card to share.  Please click HERE to see her card, along with the reminder cards from a few of our wonderful Design Team members.

There's still a couple of weeks left for this challenge, so lots of time to play along if you haven't had a chance yet.  Come join in the fun!! :)

Thanks for coming by for a visit!

CAS Card:

Stamps:  Efflorescence (Penny Black); Butterfly Birthday sentiment (Happy Little Stampers)
Paper:  Mixed Media (Strathmore)
Ink:  SU! markers:  Pear Pizzazz, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Tangerine Tango, Real Red
Accessories & Tools:  water mister, water brush

Christmas Card:
Stamps:  Mixed Christmas Sentiments (Happy Little Stampers)
Paper:  White (Neenah); Tis the Season (My Mind's Eye)
Ink:  Pear Pizzazz (SU!)
Accessories & Tools:  Holly die (Cheery Lynn), red rhinestones, clear embossing powder, heat tool

Challenges:

HLS Sept. CAS Challenge - Colouring
HLS Sept. Christmas Challenge - Holly
NBUS Challenge #5

Copper and Gold

Hi everyone.  Time for a new challenge at Addicted to CAS.  This challenge is being hosted by the very talented Doni (Lime Green Giggles), and she chose this word ...

The challenge is sponsored by

I haven't used copper on cards for a while, so when I saw the code word, I thought it was time to pull it out.  I didn't heat this copper, instead I used alcohol inks to add some pretty colours on top, but still letting the gorgeous copper metal show through.

My background panel is another one I made with my watercolour sprays (yellow, orange and magenta --- my favourite colour combo).  It pairs so beautifully with all the metallics (gold, copper, silver and bronze).  I used some diluted inka gold to add splatters all over the watercoloured piece, and then used my delicata gold ink to stamp the sentiment.  They are the same shade of bright gold.  I could have used the ink for both, but my panel was made a while back when I was experimenting, so it was great to use some stash I had on hand.

We're so excited to have Dawn (Designs by Dragonfly) as our Guest Designer this month.  Please check out the challenge HERE to see Dawn's fun leafy card, along with the other amazing cards done by our super talented Design Team.  And then make a CAS card featuring a leaf or leaves, and join in the fun.  We'd love to see you in the gallery!

I'm going to play along with the Anything Goes Challenge at Addicted to Stamps & More. :)

Thanks for coming by for a visit!!

Stamps:  Butterfly Birthday (Happy Little Stampers)

Paper:  White card base (Neenah); Watercolour (Arches 140 lb. cold press)
Ink:  Delicata Gold (Tsukineko); Alcohol inks:  Honeycomb and Poppyfield (Ranger)
Accessories & Tools:  Watercolour sprays in yellow, orange and magenta - from liquid w/c concentrate (Dick Blick), Inka Gold (Viva Decor), water mister, Little Leaves die (Sizzix), Copper Sheet

Challenges:

ATCAS #72 - Leaves
ATS&M #161 - Anything Goes

Snippets Card ... and Holiday Pics

Hi everyone.  Here a card I made a few weeks ago, but haven't had time to blog.  I made the monoprint background a while back and used part of it for another card, this was the cut-off and it made a perfectly little background for my flowers.  I cut the bottom edge to follow along with the line of the blooms and leaves which were stamped, coloured with my Zigs and fussy-cut from a snippet of mixed media paper.

I'm heading over to Snippets Playground for some fun.  Used two for this card ... snippet for the background, and snippets for the flowers. :)

I am currently away for the long weekend.  This is the only vacation this year as life has been busy with renos, getting air conditioning installed in the house, plus recovery from my injury.  Originally the plan was for the whole family to get away for a few days, but one part had to work during the long weekend, so hubby and I are here in Gibsons with the other half. :)  We have rented a house on the water with a beautiful view ... our favourite holiday places look out at water. :)  I'll include a few pictures ... one of the view from the deck, another of Alex taking pictures (he is starting a side business photographs and editing), a picture of Jer reading (he just got a one year contract on Friday morning before we left ... so Tuesday he starts and needs to come up with lesson plans for his English 8 and 10 classes).  Then there's hubby, assuming his favourite position --- reclining on the deck with a Cuba Libre. :)  And last, but not lease, a picture of our dinner last night.  Alex is an amazing cook and made Chicken Provencal with wild rice.  So delicious!!

It's morning here and Alex is making Chilaquiles (eggs with salsa, chorizo and feta) ... yummy!!!  Off to enjoy. :)

Update:  Here's a pic of this morning's breakfast.  Oh my gosh ... DELICIOUS! :)

Thanks for coming by for a visit.

Challenges:
Snippets Playground

Deck the Halls

Hi everyone.  Today is the start of the Happy Little Stampers September Christmas Challenge ...

This challenge is sponsored by

I had a lot of fun making this card.  I started with white card stock embossed with script.  I lightly sponged over top with Inka gold to just catch the top of the embossing.  Then I sprayed over top with red watercolour sprays.  The inka gold resists the sprays and stays gold and shiny.  When it dried, the red spray had softened and I ended up with more of a pink colour ... pretty, but I wanted it bright red, so I sponged a little Festive Berries distress ink over top.  I popped up a frame over the background and added a branch of holly (which I highlighted with a little more gold).

The two piece die-cut ornament is also coloured with inka gold.  I diluted some with water and then flicked my solid background ornament, leaving some of the areas white.  It's hard to tell in the photo, but the solid part of the ornament is very shiny ... similar to the sentiment.  I took another piece of white card stock and sponged with inka gold until it was solid.  Once dry, I die-cut the intricate-cut top piece and then buffed everything with a dry cloth.  Buffing Inka Gold brings out the shine.  A small gold cord bow finishes the card.

I hope you'll join us for this fun challenge.  Make a Christmas card that has holly on it (any style of card is welcome), and click on the linky at the bottom of the challenge post to add your card.  We'd love to see you in the gallery!

I'm entering this card into Merry Monday #170 - Use Holly.

Entering this into AAA Card Challenge - #47 Spectacular Embossing.

And also, I'm adding this to the Happy Little Stampers September CAS Challenge - Colouring.  I used inka gold to colour my ornament using the smooshing technique.

Thanks for coming by for a visit!

Stamps:  Mixed Christmas Sentiments (Happy Little Stampers)

Paper:  White (Neenah); Old Olive (SU!)
Ink:  Delicata Gold (Tsukineko); Festive Berries (Distress ink by Tim Holtz)
Accessories & Tools:  Rectangle Nestability (Spellbinders), Ornament die, Holly branch die, script embossing borrowed from my friend Christine, Inka Gold wax paste (Gold), sponge, Red watercolour spray, gold cording

Challenges:

HLS September Christmas Challenge - Holly
Merry Monday #170 - Holly
HLS September CAS Challenge - Colouring
AAA Card Challenge #47 - Spectacular Embossing