Happy Hour Challenges 1 & 2

Wow. Can I tell you all that I had a great time on Wednesday. Our very own Laura (designer for Cutters Creek) hosted a Happy Hour Challenge for our group. It was a blast creating and chatting with the girls. It did a lot to cheer me and lift my spirits. 

I have to admit that I have not been in the crafting mood for some time and was not interested in purchasing anything either. I allowed all of my Michael's Martha Stewart coupons to grow cold and unused. Nothing tickled my fancy.

When Laura suggested this crop I was all for it. I sat myself down and got ready for Challenge#1: Use the chalk popping technique to make a background for a card of your choosing...but you are only allowed to use the ONE

stamp (sentiment stamps are ok, though).

Here is my completed card.

Both stamps are from Hero Arts: Flower Cluster Sketch (H3129)--using just the flowers-- and Time to Enjoy (F1843)--separated to create two sections. I used the Pebbles Inc Pearlescent Chalking Set. The green satin ribbon is Anna Griffin and the Pearls are Queen and Co--Just Peachy. I used the Spellbinders Octagon Nestabilites and inked using Tim Holtz Peeled Paint and edged with Spiced Marmalade. This flower image was stamped on Ranger Glossy paper using Versamark which I zapped with the heat gun.

Fortified by my success with the first challenge I was ready for Challenge #2: Use one patterned paper and your one chosen stamp as an embellishment. You can color the stamp in using pencils, chalk, markers, whatever.

So here is what I produced.

First I spritzed the white card with Tattered Angels Glacier Mist (love that color) and this time I stamped the entire image and colored it in using EK Success Memory Pencils. I then went over that with various Distress Inks for a watercolor effect. I used the Tim Holtz Glossy Accents on the petals and dotted the centers with Studio G Sparkle Writer in black.


I cut out the image using Spellbinders Labels 6. I edged the card in black and used the leftover yellow ribbon from the first challenge to tie my stalks together. I simply used my craft knife to make the two slits and threaded the ribbon through and tied a knot.


The middle layer is the Spellbinders Pendants: Fleur de lis. I cut two of them from some Brenda Walton paper and layered so that the edges were aligned. I then used the small pendant square, cut it in half and trimmed to fit the space left between the two larger pendants. I used some of my Memories Direct small ink pads to enhance the colors on the edges of the die cut. It was subtle but made a huge difference.

I stamped the background on the black paper using just the flower portion of the stamp with white pigment ink and embossed with white embossing powder. It gives it a real shimmery look on the black card.  The small quote is from Brenda Walton. 


The entire card is attached to a piece of the American Crafts Sky: Pearl Alligator.


Me thinks I spent too much time on that card which put me way behind for Challenge #3: to use your stamp so that you would not know that you used your stamp.


I will leave you with a teaser and hopefully upload the completed project tomorrow along with Challenge 4.

So what do you think I used this to create?

You are in for a treat tomorrow. I certainly had fun inking these first three challenges...all in the name of love.
Until then.

Spring Has Sprung

Hello everyone and a belated Happy Easter!!!!

I have been so busy creating that I have not taken the time to update my blog. I am popping in tonight to share a few Easter and Spring cards that I created. Please enjoy. The bunny in the center is actually a ceramic pen that I repurposed for this project. The words and eggs came from the Studio G $1 stamp sets.

Although you cannot see the detail here, all of the words were traced using Sakura glaze pens. They give a nice 3-D look and sheen. I also photographed the inside of the card to show some of the detail work there.

I

These photos show the inside of the cards. This is the close up of some glitter markers that I used from American Crafts.

The photo to the right is a close up of the cover behind the marching bunny. I used glitter markers here as well as inking the background in a soft pink using a stencil brush. Instead of pouncing, I swirled.

I truly apologize for being so tardy, but life gets busy every now and again. I had a fabulous time using the different markers, pens, and of course inks. There is no other way to do it. You simply cannot help but to Ink in the Name of Love.

Until then.

The Learning Lab #1--Quick Cards

Hello and Happy Spring!!!!!
On the QVC Yahoo scrappers board one of the members posted regarding 6x6 paper. She wanted to know how else could she use it for other than matting photos. I believe she enjoyed scrapping in 12x12. I have a few 6x6 albums but find that it is limiting for telling complete stories. I would rather devote those to a special event. Her question was exactly the challenge I needed.

In addition, I needed to create some quick cards. That idea evolved into a series of quick cards using 6x6 paper. Here are a few of the photos.

I also created a video demonstrating the project. Since the video exceeded the limit set by Blogger, I uploaded to Vimeo. I sped up the footage and when Vimeo converted the movie, some of the takes became unstable and blurred. I will work tomorrow to separate out the video into two smaller ones.

Until that happens here is the link to see this one.

http://www.vimeo.com/3806460

I hope you will join me again on this blog for more from the Learning Lab. In subsequent posts, I will focus on each of the cards and share some of the elements and techniques used to create them.

Keep Inking In the Name of Love.

Until then.

The Brown Series Three

Hello again. This is card number three in the series. One more to go and then we can move on to some other creative ideas. I wanted to show how you can take the same basic design and put a twist on it. This is a great way to maximize that left over paper. Or you can start with a 12x12 sheet and cut it down. Done properly you can get at least 16-20 cards completed without skimping on the materials. Hmmm. That gives me ideas for my next few posts.




Still using the invitation remnants I again stamped the Fiskars quote onto the orange cardstock and inked the edges. This time I carried the background swirl stamp onto the quote. It was then adhered to the brown paper--all Bazzill. On this photo you can see where I used a fantastic swirl stamp from Little Yellow Bicycle. I applied three different shades of ink to the stamp and did primary and secondary generation stamping to achieve this effect. I absoloutely adore this stamp set. You will see more of these images on cards and scrapbook pages I create.


To add more creativity I ran the three tabs through a Cuttlebug folder. Then I used the tourquoise/blue ink and swiped it over the raised portions. This really made the images POP.


I was excited to use some new Petaloo flowers I received. I layered an orange and soft blue felt flower over the polka dot to tone it down a bit and adhered the entire ensemble together with a brown brad. The polkas mimic the dots found on the three squares cardstock at the bottom of the card.

I had so much fun testing my creativity with this series. I really like the randomness and the free form of this card. This also gives me designs for my arsenal. They are simple enough to be mass produced in a short amount of time. They can easily be turned into anniversary, sympathy, get well or whatever card with a simple switch of the quotes.


The final card in the series is cute if not totally unique. Look to find it here in a few days. Maybe over the weekend if I get ambitious.

Of course it is inked with lots of love. Why bother to ink, if it is not Inked in the Name of Love.

Until then.

The Brown Series Two

Hello. This has been a whirlwind weekend for me. It has been read across America week to celebrate the birthday of Dr. Seuss. I read aloud The Gingerbread Cowboy to my son's kindergarten class and then again to a group of sixth graders on Friday. They both loved the western take on an old classic. I love reading. I will devour a good novel in one evening. It has been discovered that I will read to exhaustion.

Upon coming home I hurried to my computer because Kelly at Flowers to Flourishes was having a marathon sale this weekend. You had to register by March 2nd to participate. I was good. I think I only ordered two items on Friday and three on Saturday. The sale ran through Sunday night where I picked up several bargains. I might just faint when I see my invoice. I am so glad that she hooked up with our QVCYahooScrappers group to get this event going. Thanks, Kelly, you ROCK.

Back to the title of my post. This is the second card in my brown/earth tone series. I have been working to step out of my comfort zone. I took a few close ups to give a better idea of some of the techniques I used.

On these two flowers I stamped that fabulous medallion on the orange and a second generation stamp on the lt. blue flower. I adhered the felt centers using a cream colored brad.

On the right hand side of the card I stamped a medallion below the flower to echo the one I decided to use on the flower.

Kind of like a repeat pattern. I also used the medallion to stamp a background on the card since I decided not to use a backer. There is a lot going on with this card, but I wanted the look to remain simple in appearance; therefore, the background effect is achieved through second generation stamping.

If you look closely at the

bottom tags you will notice that the corners have been rounded. Each was embossed using three different circular cuttlebug folders.

After embossing I used a cosmetic wedge to transfer the blue ink to the raised portion of each embossed center.

I then used the Anna Griffin Chocolate Ink to stamp the sentiments from Inkadinkado peg words set. They are intentionally stamped at an angle.

The main quote is from Fiskars and is stamped in chocolate on orange which is inked in blue and matted on brown cardstock--all from Bazzill. Of course to finish off the card I edged the entire perimeter in blue ink. There is ink all over this card. I really love the title quote: Life is a journey, not a destination. Enjoy yours and spread a little Ink in the Name of Love along the way.

Until then.

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day. It has been a whirlwind one for me. My car had to be taken to the auto doctor for diagnoses and repair. The bill is going to be whopping. There is a little solace from the deal. The company loaned me a beautiful 2009 Acura TL. I am SPOILED. On board GPS, XM Radio, Keyless start up, power everything. Oh, to live the good life.

Back to business. I wanted to post a card that pays homage to the men in our lives. They don't always want frills so I went with classic red, black and white.

I stamped the hearts on red mulberry paper and ran the black through the Cuttlebug inside the Swirls embossing folder. I then used the deckle edge scissors to trim. I used clear Versamark, clear embossing powder and used the heat gun to get a glossy look. On the bottom black mat I used the Fiskars hearts texture plate with Versamark and powder. The valentine's ribbon is from Michael's. The red mat is from Hot Off The Press Paper Pizazz Solid Jewel Tones. And lastly I grabbed a few rhinestones to give the hearts a bit of sparkle.

Enjoy. It is hard to believe what a difference the clear embossing ink over versamark made to plain, matte, black cardstock. It is so much fun to Ink in the Name of Love.

From my heart to yours on Valentine's Day.

Until then.