Friendly Flower

          Several weeks ago, Yana Smakula did a YouTube video and blog post about coloring with Copic markers and heat embossing.  I’d always been told not to emboss and color with Copics.  Well, I had a “duh” moment when I watched the video.  She colored her image the traditional way using Copic friendly ink and then embossed over it after completing the coloring.  All you have to do is leave the stamp in a stamp positioner while you color your image so you can heat emboss afterwards.  I find coloring large images somewhat intimidating.  There’s so much coloring to do and requires time sitting doing it.  But this image from Gina K is the perfect size for me!  

         Here’s my list of what I used to make this card.  I’m going to color it again in different colors again soon! 

·       Stamp set(s):  Gina K Designs – Friendship Flower SS    

·       Ink(s):  Memento – Tuexdo Black; Versamark – Watermark; Gina K – Sea Glass

·       Paper:  Xpress It Blending Card – white; Gina K – Sea Glass

·       Dies & Embossing folders:  Heffy Doodle – Imperial Stitched Rectangles Die; Tim Holtz – Botanical Embossing Folder

·       Embellishments/Other things of note:  PPP – Aquamarine 6mm sequins; PTI – Silver Detail Embossing Powder; Copic Markers – YG 61, 63, 67 – BG 11,13,15 – Y 32, 35, 38

Hats off to Yana for letting me know thru her work that there is a way to heat emboss with Copic Markers – just can’t use digital images though! 

Hope you’ve enjoyed this post.  Thank you for taking the time to stop by and spend some of you valuable time here! 

Many Blessings,

Donna

Glitzy Happy Heart Valentine

          What a fun card this was to make!  This is my second try using Gina K’s Glitz Glitter gel.  The first one I did without the Deco Foil Stencil Pal.  While it turned out OK, it wasn’t quite as even coverage.  I highly recommend the Stencil Pal when using this type of medium.  Coverage results are better and it’s a breeze to use!  I had seen this Glitz Glitter Gel used on a Gina K YouTube video and fell in love!  Definitely getting more of the colors available from this company!  It really makes a big statement for a simply designed card but what an impact a bit of glittery gel makes on the design.  The WOW factor goes way up!  I did add a bit of dimension by adding some white Fun Foam to the back of the panel and to protect the card during mailing!

On another note, I’m really enjoying the Taylored Expressions Simple Strips Background stamp set and dies.  Not to mention they’ve just come out with the backer dies for their sentiment strips.  Can anyone say “Thank You” to this company for the fact that they listen to their customer requests?  You’ll be seeing these sentiments frequently on my cards going forward!  While I don’t have the mini strips yet, I do plan on purchasing them to make my card making a breeze!

To quote someone I follow, here’s my enabler list! 

·       Stamp set(s):  Taylored Expressions – Simple Strips Background SS     

·       Ink(s):  Gina K – Black Onyx, Tranquil Teal

·       Paper:  Gina K – Heavy Weight 120# White, Tranquil Teal

·       Dies & Embossing folders:  Taylored Expressions – Simple Strips Background Dies

·       Embellishments/Other things of note:  Gina K – Glitter Glitz Gel Turquoise Sea, Snowflake Mandala Stencil; Fun Foam – White; iCraft – Deco Foil Stencil Pal

I’ll be posting this on my Etsy shop later today hopefully.  Just in time for Valentine’s day.  I’ve left the inside blank because really this sentiment could be used anytime for encouragement of a loved one, for a birthday, or any other happy occasion.  You can also find this card on Splitcoast Stampers, Pinterest and Instagram!  Just look for dloates2005 and InklingsArtistry1951(Instagram) across all of these social media platforms.  I invite you to follow me here and across the web, too!  Hope you’re having a wonderful day!  It’s rainy where I am today, but it’s sunny in my craftroom!

Many Blessings,

Donna

Rainbow Hearts

          My Honey Bee Stamps order arrived late afternoon on Friday so by yesterday I was back in my craftroom inking up these new stencils – love! – and making Valentine’s cards for my Etsy shop.  I made a card with each of the heart stencils.  I blended Gina K inks on her heavy weight cardstock with the Taylored Expressions blending brushes.  They spread like butter on hot toast together and got these glorious blends!  How fun are these colors?!  Each panel is 4.25” by 5.5” and popped up on a white card base with Fun Foam (from Amazon) for a bit of depth and dimension!  All of my supplies are listed below!

·       Stamp set(s):  Gina K – Heart SS & Love Is All You Need SS (inside)    

·       Ink(s):  Gina K – Red Velvet, In the Navy, Passionate Pink, Tranquil Teal, Coral Reef, Wild Dandelion, Jelly Bean Green, Black Onyx

·       Paper:  Gina K – Heavy Weight White, Black Onyx

·       Dies & Embossing folders:  Gina K – Heart Die; Heffy Doodle – Imperial Stitched Rectangle Dies 

·       Embellishments/Other things of note:  Honey Bee – Fluttering Hearts Stencils; Taylored Expressions – Blending Brushes; Fun Foam – White; Ranger – Glossy Accents; Verve – sequins (retired) 

I love using supplies from different companies as I create.  The stamps and dies and other items worked together perfectly to bring both of these cards together.  I especially love the “Heart” die as it was part of a stamp and die combo that I received last fall at  class taught by Gina K herself in Greensboro, NC.  I cut out the heart die 6 times – 3 for each card and stacked them together with her Connect Glue.  I used some Glossy accents over the top of the die cuts once down on my card front to add even more dimension and some shine.  With sparkly sequins to finish off the card, we’ve got a big impact for relatively easy card. 

I hope you’ve enjoyed your visit to my blog today.  I’d love to hear what you think about any of my creations!  See you next time.  Don’t forget about my Etsy shop – Cotton2Craft where I sell my cards!  Hope to see you there!  

Many Blessings,

Donna

Honey Bee House

          I made 10 of these cards all at once but only 9 of them will be going to my realtor friend from our church and to my Etsy shop.  One of them looks a bit derelict with a window that’s a bit off kilter.  Maybe I’ll save it for Halloween this year!  LOL  Making 10 of these at the same time was a bit daunting as there are A LOT of little pieces in the set and I didn’t begin to use them all.  But what a cute little house these all turned out to be.  But cutting 10, 20 or even 40 of some things can be daunting so give yourself plenty of time to do the tastk.  You’ll be glad you did.

I do want to say something about the attention to detail in this set.  The green shrubbery even has a right and left side for attaching it to the house.  How cool is that?! When I saw this set I immediately thought of this set as perfect for realtors to share with their clients at closing.  So I’m marketing on Etsy to realtors!  I’m just starting out on Etsy so we will see what kind of traffic we get.  Here are the details for my card!  I do recomend that you use a heavy base weight cardstock like I used here so that your card front holds up to the layers and gluing that’s needed here.

·       Stamp set(s):  PTI – Tucked In: New Home & Polka Dot Parade SS    

·       Ink(s):  Gina K – Black Onyx; Copic – Spica Marker - Black

·       Paper:  Gina K – Black Onyx, Cherry Red, Moonlit Fog, Fresh Asparagus; Neenah Solar White 110#

·       Dies & Embossing folders:  Honey Bee Stamps – House Builder Card Base; PTI – Skinny Mini Banner Dies  

I’ll be working on Valentines cards so watch the blog and my Etsy shop to see what I create.  My Valentine goodies from Honey Bee Stamps shipped out today so hopefully I’ll have them to start creating some yummy goodness by the first of next week! 

Many Blessings,

Donna

Winter HUGS & THANKS

          Winter is still with us and around here it’s feeling like winter – which I enjoy.  I brought out my big HUGS and big THANKS and a snowflake edger die to capture some winter for a couple of cards for my Etsy shop – Cotton2Craft that my daughter and I have just launched!  While there is not any stamping on the card front, I always stamps the back of the cards I make with a sentiment from the stamp set listed below.  It’s sort of become my trademark and my word for this year is JOY!  Kind of fits don’t you think?  Here are the details for these two cards! 

·       Stamp set(s):  Papertrey Ink – New Every Morning SS (back of card)    

·       Ink(s):  Gina K Designs – Ocean Mist

·       Paper:  Gina K Designs – Ocean Mist; Neenah Solar White 110#; Michael’s Glitter CS

·       Dies & Embossing folders:   MFT – Big HUG & Big THANKS Die-namics; Hero Arts – Snowflake Edge Fancy Die

·       Embellishments/Other things of note:  Pretty Pink Posh – Snowflake Sequins Mix  

I cut out the HUGS and THANKS 3 times – once in glitter cardstock and two times in the same color cardstock as the card front to give my sentiments some dimension!  It really helps the sentiment word to stand out while giving some additional texture to my card front.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!  I hope you’ve enjoyed what you’ve seen.  Please click the link if you’d like to follow me to be notified of new posts!  

Card back

Many Blessings,

Donna