Inspiration from the Greetery!

       
             I am loving the first release from The Greetery! As usual, Betsy Veldman has done it again with turning her water colored blooms and scenes into stamps and stencils to help us all look like artists!  I am blown away by this release.  I’ll be featuring two cards on this post made with the stamps, dies and stencils from this brand new company!

My first card features The Greetery’s Fleur Impressions Stamps & Dies.  Aren’t they lovely?  I’m not good at water coloring – I need to practice more but even then, I don’t think I have the talent that Betsy does.  She’s simply amazing with a brush and water colors.  I’m so glad that she shares her talent with us!  I wanted to really showcase these lovely blooms but I wanted texture so I turned to this Garden Gild die.  It has a floral theme to it and I think it works perfectly with the Fleur Impressions’ florals.  Once I figured out how to line up the stamps for layering, everything went smoothly and these blooms just blew me away!  I had a fun afternoon inking up my stamps and experimenting with ink colors to layer away! But these were my favorite even though I didn’t get to the blues and blue-greens in my ink stash.  I debated about sequins to give my flowers some sparkle and went with some small 4mm sparkling clear sequins from Pretty Pink Posh! Just a few scattered around seemed to enhance these gorgeous blooms.  

I’m entering this card over on the Papertrey Ink Blog for Laurie’s Fabulous Favorites.  This week’s favorites were to use your favorite card layout and create a card. I choose florals and a simple tone on tone background.  I did flip the placement of the flowers from the top left to lower right to let the intricacy of the Garden Gild cover plate shine thru.  It is so gorgeous don’t you think?  It perfectly sets of those lovely blooms!  I think it was the right choice!

·      Stamp set(s):  PTI – The Skinny Stamp Set; The Greetery – Fleur Impressions Stamp Set   

·      Ink(s):  PTI – Sweet Blush, Pale Peony, Berry Sorbet, Harvest Gold, New Leaf

·      Paper:  PTI – Stamper’s Select White

·      Dies & Embossing folders:  PTI – Make It Market Mini: Garden Gild Die; The Greetery – Fleur Impressions Die

·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Pretty Pink Posh – 4mm Sparkling Clear Sequins  

My second card features the Fir & Foliage #1 suite of products!  They are awesome.  I first stenciled the Cobblestone Path using Stormy Sea ink to give it the look of a flag stone walk way.  The two-step stencil was easy to use and it comes with a mask to ink blend around it to make a scene with the walk way going off into the distance.  Love this!  I stamped the trees from the stamp set  and cut them out placing them so that they give depth to my scene and used the Comforting Commands stamp and die set to give my scene a peaceful and thoughtful tone. Love the matching dies to each of the four big sentiments.  I finished off my card front with some floral sequins in the grassy areas to add a touch of whimsy!  Besides there are often flowers popping up in grassy areas, right?

·      Stamp set(s):  The Greetery – Fir & Foliage #1 & Comforting Commands Stamp Sets 

·      Ink(s):  Papertrey Ink – Green Parakeet, New Leaf, Ripe Avocado, Cocoa Bean, Stormy Sea, Spring Rain

·      Paper:  PTI – Stamper’s Select White, Fresh Snow Linen (base) & New Leaf (sentiment stack)

·      Dies & Embossing folders:  Heffy Doodle – Imperial Stitched Rectangle Die; The Greetery – Fir & Foliage #1 Die & Comforting Commands Die

·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Picket Fence Studio – Life Changing Brushes; The Greetery – Cobblestone Path Stencil; Pretty Pink Posh – Summer Flowers Sequin Mix

That’s all for this time!  I’m looking forward to the next release from the Greetery. With Fir & Foliage #1, I’ve got to assume that there is going to be more in the series along with designs from Betsy’s daughter who did that cute panda this time.  Next order, that Panda will be mine.  

That’s all for now!  Thanks for stopping by to see me and my inklings about my projects!

Many Blessings,

Donna

I “Heart” You Unicorn

          On Friday, (April 26^th) I had the opportunity to take a class with Gina K from Gina K Designs of Wisconsin.  We made 3 cards using her groundbreaking Wreath Builder Stencils and had a blast!  She is a great demonstrator of technique and had everything for us on an overhead projector. The two-hour class just flew by. Time for a shout out to the fabulous ladies of the Paper/Crafting Studio on Randleman Road in Greensboro, NC for getting Gina K to come to us in North Carolina for some fun and laughter.  At the end of the class, everyone was given a brand new release stamp set – the one I used here – the Heart Stamp Set with matching die!  What a treat

         All this to say, that I’m using this card for an entry into Papertrey Ink’s Win It Wednesday with Laurie’s Fabulous Favorites.  This week was to make a shaped card using your favorite shape.  To be truthful, I don’t make very many shaped cards, but I do have this precious little granddaughter who just happens to love unicorns so when this die set was released, it was a must have!  These Potbellies are designed by Betsy Veldman who has since left PTI and has started her own company called The Greetery!  Go check her out!  Her first release happened this past Friday, and it was a huge success!

·      Stamp set(s):  Gina K Designs – Heart Stamp Set  

·      Ink(s):  PTI – Harvest Gold

·      Paper:  PTI – Stamper’s Select White, Harvest Gold, Harvest Gold Gingham, True Black, Saffron Spice, Soft Stone, Raspberry Fizz

·      Dies & Embossing folders:  PTI – Potbellies Unicorn Die; Gina K Designs – Heart Die

·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Stash – Glitter; Paper Studio – Black Gemstones; Pretty Pink Posh – 6mm Lemon Meringue Sequins; Wink of Stella - clear

For the card, I cut out the pieces to make my unicorn, assembled it,  and then glued it to a Harvest Gold die cut as the card base using the unicorn die.  I added some glitter to her hoofs and some Wink of Stella elsewhere to make her glow.  I die cut the Heart word die from the Gina K set three times to stack it for some dimension to my little unicorn.  Such a cute little thing, don’t you think?  While Malin can’t read her cards I send her, when she’s older she will be able to look back and see that her Nanny was thinking about her a lot from the cards I’ve made and sent her way!  I just love her so much!  I love being her Nanny!

That’s it for now!  I thank you for stopping by to visit my blog today!  I hope you’ve enjoyed your visit and have gotten some inspiration from my inklings about this project.  Check back with me soon to see what else I’m up to before the move to SC!

Many Blessings,

Donna

Build-a-Flower Mother’s Day

 
           With Mother’s Day coming up soon while we are getting ready to move to another state, I’m ahead of where I usually am by getting this one knocked out early.  I played for most of an afternoon with ink and made daffodils in yellow, blue, purple and blue-green tones but I went to my stand by combo of blue and yellow for this card.  I'm also playing along the the Color Throwdown #540 challenge this week with this card.  I don't think that I've done this challenge before but there's a first time for every challenge, right?

         

           I found the layering of these Altenew daffodils easy to line up until I got to the centers of them.  I played with the centers as I went along and still found them hard to line up.  It was a bit frustrating but the results are still more than adequate and actually quite lovely.  I do find Altenew’s way of releasing their inks in families that work together make the layering much easier than most other stamp companies. The yellow bloom is done with Altenew Inks and the blue with Papertrey Ink.  The shopping details for my card are below.

• ·      Stamp set(s):  Altenew – Build-a-Flower: Daffodils Stamp Set   
• ·      Ink(s):  PTI – Spring Rain, Blueberry Sky, Enchanted Evening, Dark Indigo, New Leaf, Green Parakeet; Altenew – Buttercream, Warm Sunshine, Caramel Toffee, Paper Bag 
• ·      Paper:  PTI – Stamper’s Select White, Enchanted Evening, Harvest Gold
• ·      Dies & Embossing folders:  PTI – Shaped Sayings: Mother’s Day Die, Bold Borders: Prism Die; Altenew – Build-a-Flower: Daffodil De
• ·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Pretty Pink Posh – 6mm Lemon Meringue Sequins; Wink of Stella – clear   

I was looking for texture in the background and experimented with another cover plate.  The Bold Borders: Prism Die worked out the best for arranging the blooms and sentiment on the card front. I finished off my card with some sequins and Wink of Stella to the leaves.  I just love a little bit of sparkle on my cards! With Wink of Stella, I’m even able to get away with sparkle on cards for the men in my life!  LOL 

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog.  It’s always a pleasure to have you visit.

Many Blessings,

Donna

Vintage Beauties for Win It Wednesday

          I’m back with another entry for WIW and Laurie’s Fabulous Favorites over at the Papertrey Ink Blog.  This time the challenge was to make a card using your favorite coloring medium.  Other than stamping and layered images, my go to for a long time has been my Copic Sketch markers.  I just love the depth you can get with shading.  The set I chose is not one that I would usually choose for coloring with Copics but I’m not sure why.  It is a set that I really love and comes with its own fill-in stamp to color the flower. I didn’t really pay too much attention to my light source but did end up with most of the deeper colors on the lower left of the petals.  Go figure! I’m pleased with the outcome.  I had chosen these colors to use with some new Nuvo Embellishment Mousse in Pacific Teal but had some trouble get the colors to match up on a cloudy day without the sunlight.  They look fine on this pretty summer day today.  I’ll make a card with the leftover blooms for a later time!  I do think the card turned out great!  Below you’ll find all the details!

·      Stamp set(s):  PTI – Vintage Linens Stamp Set    

·      Ink(s):  PTI – Aqua Mist; Memento – Tuxedo Black; Copic – BG13, BG15, BG18

·      Paper:  PTI – Stamper’s Select White, Aqua Mist Gingham

·      Dies & Embossing folders:  PTI – Vintage Linens Die, To the Point Edgers 2 Die

·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Wink of Stella – Clear; Pretty Pink Posh – 6mm Sparkling Clear Sequins

I used the Wink of Stella pen on the center of the flowers to give them some sparkle and shine.  The sequins add another touch of shine and are the perfect touch for this simple layered floral.

Thank you so much for stopping by!  Have a wonderful week and Happy Monday.  FYI, I just started packing for a move from NC to Greenville, SC at the end of next month.  I might not be as visible around my blog after I get Mother’s Day cards out of the way.  It’s going to be a challenge to decide what goes into storage and what stays with me from my craftroom while we live in an apartment for a few months while our home in High Point sells, and we find the perfect home to buy in Greenville.  I’m just looking forward to it all being over! 

Many Blessings,

Donna

Of Cards and Daughters

               One of my strongest spiritual gifts, is the gift of encouragement.  I guess I chose the right profession – clinical social work, but I find myself often in need of cards to send to family or friends when I know that they are going thru some difficult times.  Both of my precious all grown-up daughters are facing life issues – not medical life threatening or anything like that.  But this world is a crazy place to live sometimes, and we all face challenges that are difficult.  As a mother, I just want to encourage my girls even though both are grown and out of the nest.  It’s just that mothering and nurturing instinct that never goes away.  So, I created these cards with each of my girls in mind.  

I most often use photopolymer stamps, but when I heard that Heather Nichols who used to design for Papertrey Ink had a release coming out over on Taylored Expressions, I HAD to check it out.  And I did, and I bought her lovely new stamps and die sets.  I’ve stopped buying rubber stamps because I love to see where I’m stamping BUT, using my MISTI and scrap paper helped me get everything lined up and straight so I just might be indulging myself more over at Taylored Expressions.  They also have a lovely line of stencils and embossing folders, too!  Be sure to check them out!

·      Stamp set(s):  Taylored Expressions – Simply Stamped: Feathers & Wild & Free Stamp Sets   

·      Ink(s):  PTI – True Black, Aqua Mist, Tropical Teal, Hibiscus Bursts, Raspberry Fizz (black card), Lemon Tart, & Bright Buttercup (Aqua Mist card)

·      Paper:  PTI – Stamper’s Select White, True Black & Aqua Mist

·      Dies & Embossing folders:  TE – Simply Stamped: Feathers Die; Bead Board Embossing Folder; Honey Bee – A2 Double Stitched Frames

·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Pretty Pink Posh – 6mm Onyx Sequins, Summer Flowers Sequins, 4/6mm Sparkling Clear Sequins, Zig Wink Of Stella – Clear 

There are some differences between the cards – which was caused by an error on my part but when that happens, there’s always more cardstock (I know I’m a hoarder there! LOL) and more die cutting to be done. My girls are different and so should their cards be, too! 

Thank you for stopping by for a visit!  Come back soon!  Sign up to follow and you’ll be notified of new posts, too!

Many Blessings,

Donna

PS:  Normally not two posts in one day!  We've been traveling recently so I got behind!

Dogwood Birthdays

           

           I’ve always loved dogwoods.  We had some in the yard where I grew up.  They are glorious in the spring against the new green leaves of other trees.  I always associate them with April and with Easter.  So for some adult family birthdays for this month, I chose to use Papertrey Ink’s Warm Regards that feature this lovely bloom. Since one is for my sister-in-law and one is for my husband, I went with green sentiments for one and brown for my husband.  I’m also putting this one in for Win It Wednesdays with Laurie over on the PTI blog for this month.  Wanda Cullen over at Cullen-ary Creations was able to verbalize my style – Clean Layers with florals as the usual focal point.  Hats off to you Wanda for putting our style into words.  It's nice to have my style verbalized so that I am not be envious of those beautiful creations of others that just don't seem to work for me.  I have a style, and it's gorgeous as well in its own way!

·      Stamp set(s):  PTI – Warm Regards & Inspired: Hope Stamp Sets  

·      Ink(s):  PTI – Ripe Avocado & Cocoa Bean Die Inks; Fresh Snow Hybrid Ink

·      Paper:  PTI – Classis Kraft & Cocoa Bean or Ripe Avocado, Classic Kraft Gingham

·      Dies & Embossing folders:  PTI – Warm Regards Die, Scallop Stackers: Medium Die, Say It Simply: Lovely Birthday Die; MFT – Happy Birthday Die

·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Faber-Castell – Polychromos Dark Red Pencil; Pretty Pink Posh – 6mm Espresso Sequins; Wink of Stella – Clear Pen; Hampton Art – Glitter Glue

As I look back on the cards that I do, this style with clean layers and florals is one I often use for my cards.  My next blog post features two cards I’m sending to my daughters.  Very similar style this time using feathers instead of flowers, but still with those layers.  I think I like the layers because you can tuck the florals in and around the sentiment being used.  There are variations to how this looks depending on how you place the floral or other small layering elements.  So that’s my story for today.  What do you think?  Has Wanda named a new style moniker?

I've added the inside sentiment and what I've decided to do for all the cards I make and send or sell.  I am putting words of encouragement - often featuring scripture - on the back of my cards as an encouragement for those who receive these cards.  One of two top spiritual gifts is the gift of encouragement so this just makes complete sense to me; not to mention it points others towards Jesus!

         Thank you for stopping by my little place here on the web!  I enjoyed having you.  See you soon with more paper goodness!

Many Blessings,

Donna

Adorable Elephant Birthday

         We have a big occasion coming up in our family this month!  Our only grandchild turns 4!  She is such a delight and loves to color and spends time just about daily coloring and drawing.  I wonder where she gets her love of color.  LOL!!  I can’t wait to get moved next month so I can share some of my crafting time with her!  Especially as she gets older!  For now, we limit her coloring tools to things that are not permanent!  But as she gets older, who knows!?!?!?

         With the remake of Walt Disney Studios Dumbo coming out soon, this cute little guy from My Favorite Things Stamps seemed perfect.  This is such a cute set!  Perfect for the kiddos in your life!  Here is my list of items used in this card!

·      Stamp set(s):  MFT – Adorable Elephants SS   

·      Ink(s):  PTI – Spring Rain, Blueberry Sky, Enchanted Evening, New Leaf, Green Parakeet; Memento – Tuxedo Black

·      Paper:  PTI – Stamper’s Select White

·      Dies & Embossing folders:  Honey Bee Stamps – A2 Scallop Honey Cuts; MFT – Adorable Elephants & Stitched Fishtail Flags Die-namics

·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Copic Markers (photo below); Spica Pens – Black and Clear; Wink of Stella – Clear; Picket Fence Studio – Life Changing Blender Brushes; Pretty Pink Posh – Summer Flowers Sequin Mix

Copic Markers used in this project!

You may notice that one of my tools I used is Picket Fence Studio’s Life Changing Blender Brushes.  The verdict is in!  I love them. I’ve used sponge daubers for backgrounds and they’ve been ok, but these really are a game changer.  They are easier to use and really make blending inks on cardstock quick and easy.  As I play with them more, I’m sure that I will be using them a lot more often. They blended well on Papertrey Ink’s Stamper’s Select white cardstock.  It has a nice smooth finish and is a good heave weight cardstock.  To add dimention without taking away from my beautiful background, I used my new Honey Bee Stamps A2 Scallop Honey Cuts to pop up the center and use the rest of the A2 size panel to frame it.  Perfect outcome if I do say so myself!

Thank you for stopping by my blog!  I appreciate your visit!  Take some time and browse around if you're so inclined!  I appreciate your visit!

Many Blessings,

Donna