From Pink to Blue

Moxie Fab is hosting a color challenge with several combos to choose from to work with.  This challenge goes along with their new issue, Color Inspirations that looks just amazing.

I picked this one, hopefully I will have time to play with more of them before the deadline.

For the start of my card, I used a brand new background stamp by Stamp Camp, a company that is often at our stamp conventions.  I just stamped it with a black Versafine stamp pad and then embossed it with clear embossing powder.  Next I rubbed a few different stamp pads directly over the image. Of course, the embossed images resist the ink. I wanted to have my paper be a light pink on the one edge and then for the colors to progress to an coral/orange.  I used some sprays to help strengthen my colors.

The butterfly stamp is a brand new set by Inkadinkadoo. It is filled with butterflies that have different designs on them. I just need time to use all of them!!!  This was done in the same technique as my background and parts colors in the design were strengthened with Copic markers. 

This shows a little close-up of my punched border and the colors on the stamped image. Notice I used self adhesive rhinestones in pinks and orange to help with the progression of color.

It is that time of the week again to use a new Unscripted sketch. This week we were to also create a project with a maculine theme. That always seems to be a challenge for some reason.

The striped paper is by Nikki Sivils, Scrapbooker from the Something for Everyone collection.  I though that was a great starting point.

Next, I picked up a couple scraps of some Core Impressions cardstocks that were sitting on my desk. They both went with the colors in my paper and had a masculine feel to them. Just a bit of sanding exposed the great embossed design that comes on them already.

Gotta share a few photos too...

More on our recent zoo trip. He loves to play with the big, cracked eggs that are in the play area.

He had so much fun on this rope design even if he did end up upside down!

And more on that tongue that seems to make the play even more fun.

Thanks for visiting, Linda (lbpost)

Creating Backgrounds - PART 7 - PAINT

FIRST OF ALL - will you vote? I entered a contest and the last phase to decide the winners is a vote of the craftying community. Can you take a minute to go look at the great projects and cast a vote? Thanks!!!
JustRite Self-Inking stamps contest

For a creative and fun background, I am using stamping and paint. What makes this a fun technique is you can custom color a piece of paper and I love the feel and texture that paint adds to paper. This just provides a little different look to the finished card. #1. I again started with a plain piece of white cardstock. That was stamped with a "dot" background stamp. I know I have used this before but I really love this thing! It is just so versatile. Mine is from Stamp Camp and I know that Cornish Heritage Farms has one that is very similar. Mine is an unmounted rubber stamp that I use with an acrylic block. I stamped it with the black ColorBox stamp pad and then embossed it with black embossing powder.
(The reason I embossed my image is that I wanted the dots to really stand out against the next step and the embossing will resist the paint.)
#2. Next, the red paint was brushed across the stamped and embossed dots. This is fast and simple. I went outside of the lines of my image too because I am going to cut it to size to use it.
#3. Once the entire surface is painted, you should only wait a few minutes before you start rubbing the paint off of the embossed design. I just take a soft cloth or a Kleenex and gently rub it off. The paint might even still be slightly wet in some areas. You might need to use some added pressure to completely buff the paint off of each dot. Here is the finished project.
You might be wondering what my accent flower creation is! I have a friend who shared some really cool flower pieces cut from an old dictionary! (If you take a look at her blog you will tons of amazing examples of using these cut flowers) I did paint the largest, bottom flower with Sparkle, Mod Podge but that is a little hard to see in the photo. I knew that would slightly stiffen that layer and add some bling.
You can see the layers a little better in this photo. I inserted punched out red cardstock circles between the dictionary flower layers to add some stability and it also helps define the layers of flowers.

Thanks for visiting, Linda (lbpost)

UNFORGETTABLE YOU card

Materials list:
Solid Cardstock
Dot stamp – Stamp Camp
ColorBox Black stamp pad and Top Boss embossing powder – Clearsnap
Red paint – Making Memories
Circle punches – McGill
Word stickers – Sticko
Button and cut flowers

Creating Backgrounds - PART 1

The market is flooded with patterned papers and I basically love them all BUT...you can also create your own background papers. There are so many kinds of coloring mediums, mix those with some stamps and you can come up with a look that is custom. I am going to take you through a few simple steps today for creating a neat look that is really very easy and it started with plain white paper.#1. Take a piece of plain, white cardstock. I used a swiss dot background stamp by Stamp Camp. It was stamped with black, ColorBox ink and then embossed with black Top Boss embossing powder. The ColorBox ink is a pigment ink meaning it is great to use for embossing because it stays wet for awhile allowing you to pour on the powder, etc. I didn't have to emboss my design but the embossing does give a great look to the dots, they are now raised and that also allows the dots to stand up against the painting process I am going to do.
#2. To color my background, I used these pearlescent paints by UsArtQuest. They are basically pearl ex powders in a form that works by just adding water. They come in this little palette as pictured. I used a water brush to paint my paper. I LOVE water brushes!!! They have a barrel that contains water and they are ready at any instant for watercoloring. The dried paints need a little more water then what is going to come out of the brush, however, so I did squirt some water directly into the paint too. I just kept adding paint with the brush until my paper was coated. When the paint was dry, I buffed it with a soft cloth so that my shiny, embossed dots would show up well.
#3. Now for a little added interest, I used this purple Glimmer Mist by Tattered Angels. You do have to shake the container very well before using because the metallic portion of these inks settle very quickly in the bottom of the bottle. I didn't want a lot of this ink so I just did a little squirt at two of the corners.
#4. I also wanted to show here that when the bird is stamped on white cardstock, the bird is black because of the color ink I used and the flowers are white because the paper is showing through those places. I then added color to the flowers with the same watercolor brush and pearlescent paints.

This is my finished card.
I hope you can see the shiny black, embossed dots and the pearlescent look of that paint.

Thanks for visiting, Linda (aka lbpost)

THE ROAD TO A FRIENDS HOUSE card :
Materials list:
Cardstock Dot stamp – Stamp Camp
Bird stamp – Inkadinkadoo
Pearlescent Stargazers – USArtQuest
Glimmer Mist - Fully Purple/Tattered Angels
Fancy Label – K&Co.
ColorBox stamp pad – Clearsnap
Top Boss Black embossing powder – Clearsnap
Greeting stamp – A Muse Rubber Stamps
Watercolor brush - YASUTOMO