Thursday, April 30, 2009
Dreaming about Sunny Days
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Been busy, busy, busy!
Anyway, let's get on with the show and tell! Angela wanted a card for Mother's Day, so this is what the ladies made. I purposely left the front with no words, but the ladies had a choice of sentiments for the inside, depending on whether they wanted something for mother or not. Several chose the "not" and went with birthday and friends sentiments. This card style is very versatile and could be used for many different occasions. I love the colors of the Raspberry Tart Designer Series Paper. So many different cardstock colors blend so nicely with it and each gives such a different look. If you haven't gotten this paper yet, you really should give it a try.
Saturday, April 25, 2009
A Little More Coloring
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Watercoloring Fun
I was so excited about what I'd done, that I came home and worked on making cards that did justice to my work! Woo Hoo!! I know I'm not truly proficient yet, and need to practice alot! But it was fun to see this image come to life under my fingers. Gee, I'm not excited much about this, am I? LOL
All stamps and materials by Stampin' Up!
Stamps: A Kind Word and Great Friend
Cardstock: Barely Banana, Pacific Point, and Shimmery White
Ink: Stazon Jet Black and Pacific Point ink pads and Basic Black Marker to ink one word on the stamp
Accessories: Watercolor Pencils, Blender Pen, Scallop Oval Punch, Large Oval Punch, Word
Window Punch, Flower Trio Punch, Rich Regals Mini Brads, Big Shot with SU! Backgrounds 1 Texture Plates, Sponge quarter, and Dimensionals
So this is the first one. What do you think? Is there hope for me??? I'm still super excited just looking at it! It's funny when you're coloring away, each layer of color jumps out at you and looks way too intense. Looking over it now, I think there are areas that could stand a touch more color to define some of the shading areas. How interesting.
Now on to the second image I worked on. This is from the same set, and I thought the kittens were so cute. I found out it's much harder to watercolor and shade dark, tiny areas like the kittens. I wanted a gray cat like my Smokey, and it's almost impossible for me to shade the gray. Another lesson learned. Also, there is no pink in the coloring, but after putting about 50 colors up against this image, it seemed that the Pretty in Pink worked better than anything else. So I guess you don't always need to layer with colors already part of the image. Another lesson learned. What an informative day!
All stamps and materials by SU!
Stamps: A Kind Word, Sanded, Sprinkles, and Sweet Little Sentiments
Cardstock: Shimmery White, Pretty in Pink, Baja Breeze, Barely Banana
Ink: Stazon Jet Black, So Saffron, and Craft White
Accessories: Watercolor Pencils, Blender Pen, Slit Punch, Scallop Oval Punch, Large Oval Punch, 1/8" Circle Punch, White Taffeta Ribbon, Sponge quarter, and Dimensionals
Well, that's it for today. I really hope you liked these cards I've shared with you. Please feel free to give me any input on them that you have. I'll only learn by critiques of others - that's how I learn what needs improving. Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.
And thanks for stopping by today. Have a great day!
Sharon
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
More Soft Summer
Monday, April 20, 2009
Misty Monday
This card was really fun to make and it should be fun to receive too! Wouldn't this little faux purse brighten your day? And think of all the different reasons to send this card - Mother's Day, birthday, thinking of you, and just about any time you'd need a feminine card. If you change the colors and DSP, what little girl or teen wouldn't love this?
There was very little stamping on this card, but plenty of extras going on to keep this from being boring. I love how many different ideas are showing up using the Top Note Bigz Die. It's so versatile and just plain fun to use!
All stamps and materials by Stampin' Up!
Stamps: Pretty Petals and Elegant Cheer
Cardstock: Riding Hood Red, Pretty in Pink, and Bella Rose Designer Series Paper
Ink: Pretty in Pink, Basic Black
Accessories: Big Shot, Top Note Bigz Die, Pretties Kit, White Narrow Grosgrain Ribbon, Ticket Corner Punch, and Mini Glue Dots
It's too bad that the picture doesn't really show of the lovely background stamp on the pink layer. It really adds a nice feminine touch to the card. And then the flower and half pearl from the Pretties Kit really set off the clasp of the faux purse.
Lately I've noticed people adding such nice and unexpected touches to the inside of their cards. One of the ladies here took the outer edge of the
Top Note Bigz Die and used it on the inside of her
card. What a cute accent - either side! I just loved the idea and got one out of the trash and put it on my card. Thanks for the idea!! I'll have to start giving the inside of my cards a bit more thought. I usually add something to the words on the inside, but now it will need to be 'kicked up a notch'!
Thanks for visiting. I'd love to hear your ideas on who you'd like to send this card to. If you make one yourself, please send me your link so I can admire it!
Here's hoping for sunshine tomorrow...
Sharon
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Happy Sunday
Then in the afternoon, I was scheduled for a beginner class on using Copic Markers. I thought it would be a breeze, but boy was I wrong! They are so different than anything else I've ever used, that it was a real challenge to get the blending done properly. Of course, I had to purchase a 'few' colors so I could practice what I learned before I forgot everything! Only trouble was, the store was out of the Memento ink I needed for stamping. Big bummer! I went to two more stores, but neither of them had it either. How frustrating!! Arrrrgh! I keep telling myself that this will all be worth it when I can get the correct ink, practice, practice, and practice some more, and then get good enough with these that I can color like I see others do. We'll see....
Friday, April 17, 2009
Class Favorites
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Where, oh where is spring?
So since we still have awful weather, I thought it appropriate to post one more winter themed project. This 8x8 scrap page was one of the projects we made at the London Regional I was lucky enough to attend. Isn't this a cute page? And the colors are perfect for the cold winter weather.
All stamps and materials by Stampin' Up!
Stamps: Best Wishes and More
Cardstock: Pacific Point, Ruby Bed, Bashful Blue
Ink: Pacific Point Classic Ink, Old Olive and Whisper White Craft Inks
Accessories: Metal Edge Tag, VersaMarker pen, Clear Rhinestone Brad, Mini Libraary Clips, Crafters Tool Kit, On Board Timeless Type Chipboard Letters, Dimensionals, 1 3/8" Circle Punch, and 3/4" Circle Punch
I hope you can see on this picture how we used the 3/4" Circle Punch on the left side of the page. It was a very subtle play on the metal edge circle tag with the snowflake. And can you see where the snowflake was outlined with the VersaMarker pen? I was surprised at how much that showed up after it dried. And the little arrow on the left came from the inside of the W.
So many little touches really make up a cute page. SU! really outdid themselves with this page in my opinion. Hope this gives you some ideas for all those winter pictures you have stashed away. Guess I need to go through my own stash and find a pic for this page and actually get a page done! Naw, that would mess up my unfinished page streak!
Happy stamping and stay warm,
Sharon
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Sticking with a Good Thing
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Found a new Good Friend
but all the little touches
come together to make me smile. I hope you enjoy it too!
All stamps and materials by Stampin' Up!
Stamps: Good Friend
Paper: Kiwi Kiss, Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, and Whisper White
Ink: Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, Pacific Point Pads, and Chocolate Chip Marker
Accessories: Sponge Quarters, Ticket Corner Punch, Word Window Punch, Crafters Tool Kit, Chocolate Chip Narrow Grosgrain Ribbon, and Dimensionals.
Did you notice the faux stitching up in the right corner? You get so much extra texture and visual appeal with that added touch. Sometimes 'white space' is needed, sometimes it's just too much. I thought this card was on the 'too much' side of the equation and needed a little something. What's your verdict?
BTW, just a little hint for you. See the extra 'stem' alongside the center one? Oh yeah, that's a big oops. I redid the image 3 times and finally gave up and left it there. Please be very careful not to push the stamp down too hard. This caused the rubber to bend over and get the edge stamped too. This is something I really need to work on. Those super skinny stamps need a much lighter touch than the rest.
Happy stamping,
Stay warm (it's been snowing again)!
Sharon