Baby Bundle In Blue

Hi there.  I bought myself some Derwent Inktense Pencils recently and I've finally gotten around to colouring an image with them.  It's my first go with them, so be gentle!  :-)

I'm still getting used to these pencils - they're so different to what I'm used to...

Because I've used watercolour pencils, this qualifies for the TSG100 - Markers Down! Challenge at There She Goes.

Thanks for visiting!



Materials:

Stamp sets - Baby Bundle

Cardstock - Crumb Cake, Watercolour paper, Pacific Point

Inks - Versamark, Crumb Cake, Derwent Inktense Pencils

Accessories - Black Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Aqua Painter, White Seam Binding, dimensionals

Rejected...

What do you do when your cards are rejected?  You post them on your blog.  :-)

March 28th - ETA

Thanks for all the lovely comments I've been receiving!  This technique is called Emerging Colour.  I've previously written an entry on how to do it, but here it is again.  :-)

Emerging Colour is a simple technique, but it does have a lot of steps to it.

• Stamp the image you want to emerge, OR in this case choose the patterened paper you want to emerge (I've used Newsprint DSP) 
• Using Versamark, stamp the image that you want the previous image/paper to emerge through (I used Upsy Daisy)
• Use clear embossing powder to emboss the second image
• Use a brayer and the same or darker ink (I used Early Espresso) to cover the entire panel - this will cover the remainder of the first image, but will not stick to the embossing, letting the previous image or patterned paper to show through 
• Use a tissue or paper towel to rub off the remaining ink from the embossed image
• Finish off your card!

And I'm entering this into the embossing challenge on Pals Paper Arts - PPA86.

Materials:

Stamp sets - Upsy Daisy

Cardstock - Crumb Cake, Naturals Ivory, Early Espresso, Newsprint Designer Series Paper

Inks - Versamark, Early Espresso

Accessories - Clear embossing powder, heat tool, brayer, Cherry Cobbler Seam Binding, dimensionals

Oh Baby - My First Ustamp Bigshot Brilliance Project

Hi there.  My first project for Ustamp Bigshot Brilliance is up, so I thought I'd share some photos with you.

Seam Binding Double Bow

It's my first entry for Just Add Ink as a player!  I love the colour combo the girls gave, and I wanted to use it to colour one of my all time favourite Sugar Nellie images... Bumble Bee.  :-)

Isn't she an adorable image?

Here are the challenges I'm entering:

Just Add Ink 60

Simon Says Stamp Challenge - Mothers Day/Girlie

Sugar Nellie Facebook Challenge (Children's Card)

And now for the fun bit.  :-)  I've developed a major weakness for seam binding and I'm finding myself using it quite a bit on my cards.  I love it because it's soft and light, and really easy to work with.  I've had a couple of messages and emails asking about how to tie a double bow with seam binding, so I thought I'd take a few photos of the process for you.  Hope it helps!

Tutorial

Tying a Double Bow With Seam Binding

Tie a regular bow.

Pull a separate piece of seam binding underneath the knot in the first bow.

Tie a knot over the previous bow.

Tie a second regular bow.  Because seam binding is so light and soft, you can get away with multiple bows before the knot in the middle begins to look overbearing.

Secure and trim the ends of the tails.  Seam binding frays easily, so be wary!

The finished bow!  I secure mine to the cardstock with a mini glue dot.

You can see other cards that I've used seam binding on HERE (this post with also be in the results), in case you want some further inspiration. My other favourite thing to do with seam binding is to secure the knot with a gorgeous brad.

Now to the hard part - where can you get seam binding?  Seam binding is currently not offered through the Australian/New Zealand Stampin' Up! Catalogue, and my demonstrator agreement prohibits me from providing a link to competing companies.  BUT, it is definitely available in a large variety of places... you just need to look!  :-)  Happy hunting!


Materials:

Stamp sets - Bumble Bee (Sugar Nellie Gorjuss)

Cardstock - White Cambric Linen, Old Olive, Haiku DSP

Inks - Blush Blossom, Rich Razzleberry, Crumb Cake, Basic Black

Accessories - Black embossing powder, heat tool, aqua painter, white seam binding

Pure Of Heart

Oh, how I love this stamp!  It's another Sugar Nellie stamp designed by Diane Duda.  It was an absolute joy to colour too. 

Yes, I'm still addicted to seam binding... ;-)  It's so beautiful and soft to work with.

I'm entering this one in three different challenges:

The Play Date Cafe Challenge 73

The Sugar Bowl Challenge #55

Sugar Nellie Facebook Challenge (Embossing)

Simon Says Stamp Challenge

Thanks for visiting!


Materials:

Stamp sets - Pure of Heart - Sugar Nellie (by Diane Duda)

Cardstock - Watercolour paper, White Cambric Linen, Raspberry Tart DSP, Sweet and Sour DSP

Inks - Versamark, Rose Red, Perfect Plum, So Saffron, More Mustard, Blush Blossom

Accessories - Black Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Rose Seam Binding, dimensionals

Slowly Does It...

Hi all.  Some of you may have noticed that I closed my blog for nearly 2 weeks.  Without going into the boring details, life was getting me down in a big way.  I've been quite unwell and really uninspired - when I say that, I mean that I lost all joy in creating, and creating really has been the one thing that holds me together when life gets the better of me.  The catalyst for actually closing off my blog is quite an amusing story... perhaps I'll tell it soon.  :-)

I'd really like to say a big thank you to the people who emailed me and left messages on facebook.  It makes me feel so good to know that there are so many people who not only look at what I do, but care about what's happening in my little world.  Thank you.

But for now, I'm actually quite excited to say that a teeny tiny bit of inspiration has returned!  My daughter Olivia and I sat down to do some watercolouring this afternoon.  She's almost four and works at triple the speed I do...  Still, I got two images coloured.  After the past few weeks, I'm thrilled with that!  I'm posting them separately as I'm entering them in challenges.  So, here's the first one...

Isn't this image divine?  It's designed by the extraordinary Diane Duda for Sugar Nellie.

And here are the challenges I'm entering:

The Play Date Cafe Challenge 73

Sugar Nellie Facebook Challenge (Embossing)

Simon Says Stamp Challenge

Materials:

Stamp sets - Peace Angel - Sugar Nellie (by Diane Duda)

Cardstock - Watercolour paper, White Cambric Linen, Raspberry Tart DSP

Inks - Versamark, Rose Red, Perfect Plum, So Saffron, More Mustard, Blush Blossom

Accessories - Black Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, White Seam Binding, dimensionals


Thanks for visiting!  :-)

CAS 130

In an effort to not be making Christmas cards in a hurry this year, I thought I'd use this week's Clean and Simple sketch to make a couple of Christmas cards to add to my stash.  It's simple, but it works for me!

Clean and Simple 130

Materials:

Stamp sets - Signature Christmas (PTI)

Cardstock - White Cambric Linen, Whisper White, Christmas Cocoa Specialty DSP

Inks - Early Espresso

Accessories - Big Shot, Top Note die, Real Red ribbon

A Few Challenges - PPD33 and OLW43

If you're a regular to my blog, you'll know that I've really been struggling with a lack of mojo lately.  It's mainly been medically related, and I'm still adjusting meds and dosages, so hopefully things will improve soon.  That probably sounds very vague!

So to force myself into making a few cards, I decided to follow a couple of challenges.  I'm reasonably happy with the results, but the photos don't pick up the detail well!  One of the challenges was to add shimmer (but not glitter or bling) so I used Versamark Frost (a shimmery Versamark) and clear embossing powder to create my background of stars from Nursery Necessities.  You can see a hint of it in the photos, but it definitely looks better in real life!

You might need to get right up close to the monitor to see it!! lol

Anyway, here are the challenges:

Papertrey Paper Dolls Challenge #33 - Baby Cards
One-Layer Wednesday 43: Shimmer, Not Glitter or Bling


Thanks for visiting!!

Materials:

Stamp sets - Nursery Necessities, Signature Greetings (PTI)

Cardstock - White Cambric Linen

Inks - Versamark Frost, Ranger Black

Accessories - Pear Pizzazz Ribbon, Blushing Bride Ribbon, Clear embossing powder, heat tool

Another Entry For Jay Gee's Nook Challenge #5

After my previous lacklustre attempt, I thought I'd try and come up with a better entry for Jay Gee's Nook Challenge #5. 

And here's my entry.  Sadly, this took me all night to do!  I have a few personal changes underway, so hopefully that will help with my lack of inspiration lately.

Thanks for visiting... and perservering!

Materials:

Stamp sets - PTI - Mat Stack 1

Cardstock - Crumb Cake, Whisper White

Inks - Bermuda Bay, Basic Black

Accessories - So Saffron ribbon, Big Shot, Polka dots embossing folder, dimensionals