Butterflies & Blossoms

I have a new toy, the tree builder punch; and I have a feeling it will be rather versatile.

I am eager to play with the shapes and come up with new designs aside from the many different uses that are provided with the matching stamp set.

This first one is a rather simple design. I used several of the trees to make a large branch. The flower in this punch was too small for my taste so I teamed it with the Itty Bitty Accents blossom.

I added a touch of colour with my Copics and shaped the flowers a little.
Its hard to tell in the photos but I also sponged a little Soft Sky on the background.

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Bazzill, Recollections, silver foil
Stamp: Because You Care - SU
Ink: Early Espresso - SU
Alcohol markers: Copic - RV10, RV34
Punch: Tree Builder - SU, Itty Bitty Accents - SU
Die: Bold Butterfly Framelits - SU
Misc.: foam tape (to mount the butterfly)

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Bazzill, Recollections, silver foil
Alcohol markers: Copic - RV10, RV34
Punch: Tree Builder - SU, Itty Bitty Accents - SU
Die: Bold Butterfly Framelits - SU
Misc.: foam tape (to mount the butterfly), 5/8" pink organza ribbon

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.

Layered Butterfly

It was so simple to create this lovely triple layered butterfly with SU's dies and stamp set and the effect is stunning!

I mixed various colours and experimented with different looks. Even though the small butterfly is pink and the large orange combining them still worked. The filigree like butterfly allows various colours to blend together without being overpowering.

 

I used the Watercolor Wings set to stamp all three butterflies, then cut 1 large with the solid butterfly die and the other two with the cut out butterflies. I glued them one on top of the other using foam tape cut into narrow strips.

Supplies used:

Cardstock: Recollections white

Stamps: Watercolor Wings - SU, Butterfly Basics - SU

Ink: Tangelo Twist, Crushed Curry, Chocolate Chip (solid butterfly), Chocolate Chip, Early Expresso (no background - large cut our butterfly), Belushi Bride, Strawberry Slush, Island Indigo (small butterfly), Old Olive, Mossy meadow, Chocolate Chip, Tangelo twist - all SU

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.

Watercolor wings over-sized card

After playing a little with these gorgeous butterflies I thought they would be best served on a  larger canvas than normal, so opted for a 5.5 x 8.5 (A7) card. This size really allows for great flow without the card seeming too overcrowded.

I used different shades of purple for these butterflies. To be honest I tried several different combinations to see which blended the best, this is why the butterflies are different colours. Still nto sure which I like best.
The top one consists of Rich Razzleberry, Blackberry Bliss and Elegant Eggplant. The Bottom butterfly is Wisteria Wonder, Perfect Plum and Blackberry Bliss. Each butterfly is trimmed with a row of 5 rhinestones that I coloured with alcohol markers to match.

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Recollections - white
Stamps: Watercolor Wings - SU, Watercolor Wash background - SU, Gorgeous Grunge - SU, Tin of Cards (sentiment) - SU
Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Blackberry Bliss, Elegant Eggplant, Wisteria Wonder, Perfect Plum, Delightful Dijon - SU, Tuxedo Black - Memento
Alcohol markers: Copic - RV34, V17
Misc.: foam mounting tape, purple and pink sequins, rhinestones

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.

I'm here for you

I have one more "You've got this" stamp set card to share for now. Truth be told, this is my favourite of the three.
I again opted for the white outline by embossing in clear powder.

I kept the card very simple so the focus would remain on the flower. Again I added a shadow with markers. I think this one is my best colouring job so far. And let me say, it is definitely addictive.

Supplies used:

Cardstock: Recollections white, Bazzill

Stamp: You've got This - SU

Ink: Versamark, Sahara Sand - SU

Alcohol markers; Copic - R11, R22, R24, Y11, Y21, W1, W3, W5,SU Blendabilities - Old Olive

Misc.: Foam mounting squares

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.

You've got this blossoms

For this card I decided to emboss the image in clear embossing powered. The white outline results in a much softer, almost watercolour like look compared to the usual bold black outline.

I opted to use just the blossom this time. The top and right one where stamped on my card layer, the left one was stamped on a scrap piece, hand cut and then popped onto the card with foam.

I also added shadows under all the blossoms with my Copic markers. I'm still practising, but am slowly getting the hang of it; although sometimes I notice after I've coloured a certain area that I didn't quite get the lighting correct, but I suppose practice makes perfect.

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Recollections white, Bazzill
Stamp: You've Got This - SU
Ink: Versamark, Sahara Sand - SU
Alcohol markers: Copic - RV10, RV17, RV34, Y21, Y32, W1, W3. W5
Misc.: foam mounting squares, clear embossing powder

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.

You've Got This

Not wishing to delay my much anticipated playtime with some of SU's new 2015-2016 catty products I of course placed an orders on June 2nd for my most wanted items. Wednesday I stalked my UPS man (he was late; arrived at 7:30 PM).
Having finally received these wonderful new goodies I had a tough time picking what to use first.

Thank goodness Michael's came to the rescue. They had another 30% off entire purchase coupon on Friday and Saturday, as well as a one item at 40% off coupon. I had no choice, I needed to go and buy some more Copic markers.
This narrowed by choice of projects down to outline stamps and You've Got this moved up to first spot.

My first colour choice was a mix of peach and green tones. I opted for black ink for the outline.

After colouring my image I also added a subtle shadow on the right side (my first try at this). Then masked my flower and stamped the background.

As I have many colours of organza ribbon on hand, it was easy to match the peach tone. Not so for the pearls. I therefore used my Copic marker to colour them in the darkest matching shade.

Supplies used:

Cardstock: Recollections white

Stamp: You've Got This - SU

Ink: Mint Macaron - SU, Tuxedo black - Memento

Alcohol markers: Old Olive - SU Blendabilities, Copic: E000, E11, E13, Y23, Y32, W1

Die: Labels Framelits - SU

Embossing folder: Crackle - Darivce

Misc.: 5/8" peach organza ribbon, 1/1" pearls, foam mounting squares

thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.

Bride & groom favours

With summer fast approaching (we've actually had some record high temperatures here, hitting 33°C) the wedding season is upon us. The youngest daughter of close friends of ours is getting married this summer so I have been playing with various ideas in my head.
I came up with these cute little bride & groom favours. They would be great for shower gifts, or even place markers. I however will be using them as a gift topper. We have 2 gifts that will be stacked like a cake and this adorable little couple will be on the top.

As you may have guessed, these were made with the curvy keepsake die.
I added a little ribbon (5 strips, knotted at the top, attached to the back of the head, side by side) to create the veil and added a ribbon the bow, but you could easily skip the bow (or use a paper bow) and use a doily for the veil. I also added some pearls to the head piece and the dress, but rhinestones would work really well too.

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Bazzill and Recollections
Ink: Blushing Bride, Pumpkin Pie, Cherry Cobbler - SU
Die: Curvy Keepsake - SU
Punches: see instruction sheets posted below
Embossing folder: Delicate Designs - SU
Misc.: 5/8" white organza ribbon, white gel pen, black marker, rose/red chalk, pearls

The basic instructions on how to make the little 3-d rose my bride is holding can be found here I just substituted the petite petals SU flower punch .

Punch art instructions:

Bride:

 

Groom:

 

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.

Layered flower card

I have noticed that as of late I seem to be reaching for this stamps set more and more. The flowers are all lovely to colour and work for so many occasions. It is a very versatile set and to top it off it was also a free hostess set.

This time I decided on a layered look. I also used several of my old Club Scrap stamps that re-surfaced during my clean up.

  

I stamped the blossom three times; once on the card front, and twice on white scrap. The image on the card front was coloured in gray. The next image in darker orange only and the top with my three orange tones Copic.  Each layer was attached with foam mounting squares. The stem and top leaf are only two layers each; the bottom leaf is a single layer. I did stamp it on a scrap piece and then cut it out and adhered to the card front after colouring.

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Recollections white
Stamps: Bloom with hope - SU, Joyful Christmas - SU, remaining three stamps used for the background are old Club Scrap
Ink: Tuxedo Black - Memento, Early Espresso,  - SU
Alcohol markers: Basic Gray, Old Olive, Skin tone- SU,  YR00, YR02, YR04 - Copic
Misc.: foam mounting square, Early Espresso stitched ribbon - SU

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.

Painted flowers card set

This is another recycled tissue box gift set. Again it is a Royale box, this time in lovely earthy tones featuring pretty painted flowers of various sizes.

I felt a little uninspired when I started on these cards so perused the SCS challenge forum to get my creative juices flowing.
I did decided to use 2 of the recent sketch challenges.

The camera didn't catch it too well, but I added a bit of sparkle to all the flower centers.

This first card is for sketch challenge SC539

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Recollections ivory, Bazzill Butternut and Pumpkin
Patterned paper: We R Memory Keepers 6 x 6 Antique Chic paper pad, Flower print: Royale tissue box
Stamp: Chalk Talk - SU
Ink: Cajun Craze - SU, Bamboo (69) - Versa Color
Dies: Les Papillions - Shapeabilities by Spellbinders, Lacey Circles - Nestabilities by Spellbinders
Punch: 1 3/8" circle - SU
Misc. foam mounting squares, various pearls, 5/8" olive organza ribbon, Sparkles Diamond PSX


This one is for sketch challenge SC538

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Recollections ivory, Bazzill Butternut and Pumpkin
Patterned paper: We R Memory Keepers 6 x 6 Antique Chic paper pad, Flower print: Royale tissue box
Stamp: Friendly Phrases - Stampendous
Ink: Cajun Craze - SU, Bamboo (69) - Versa Color
Dies: Lacey Squares - Nestabilities by Spellbinders
Misc. foam mounting squares, 3 x 1/8' pearls, Sparkles Diamond PSX

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Recollections ivory, Bazzill Butternut
Patterned paper: We R Memory Keepers 6 x 6 Antique Chic paper pad, Flower print: Royale tissue box
Stamp: Chalk Talk - SU
Ink: Cajun Craze - SU, Bamboo (69) - Versa Color
Dies: Lacey Ovals - Nestabilities by Spellbinders
Punches: Elegant Butterfly - SU, Bitty butterfly - SU, large wide oval - SU
Alcohol markers: Old Olive - SU Blendabilities (to colour pearls)
Misc. foam mounting squares, 1/16"pearls, 5/8" olive organza ribbon, Sparkles Diamond PSX

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Recollections ivory, Bazzill Pumpkin
Patterned paper: We R Memory Keepers 6 x 6 Antique Chic paper pad, Flower print: Royale tissue box
Stamp: Because You Care - SU
Ink: Cajun Craze - SU, Bamboo (69) - Versa Color
Punch: Bitty butterfly - SU
Misc. foam mounting squares, various pearls, 5/8" olive organza ribbon, Sparkles Diamond PSX

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.

Watercolour Butteflies Card Set

I dislike wasting pretty printed materials. Tissue boxes come in such a huge and wonderful variety of  designs that they lend themselves perfectly for recycling. I have made several gift card sets in the past and they have all been well received.
So much so that they are my daughter's first choice of gift for her female colleague's at work. I usually make them with a specific person in mind but am finding that I am often given too little notice so I thought I would make a few sets to have on hand just in case.

This watercolour butterfly print from Royale is a current favourite. I'm a little picky, or shall I say OCD, and as the family room has purple accents the tissue box of course has to be purple. I therefore have quite a few of these empty boxes on hand.

Note these are fairly small boxes  so only have a few complete images. I was able to make  these three cards from one box.

Supplies used: 

Cardstock: Recollections black and white, Silver metallic card scrap

Stamp: Wonderful Words - SU

Ink: StazOn white

Punches: Elegant Butterfly - SU, Bitty Butterfly - SU

Die: Itty bitty banners - SU

Misc.: 1/16" rhinestones, foam mounting squares, 5/8" white organza ribbon, lavender doily - Recollections

Supplies used: 

Cardstock: Recollections black and white, Silver metallic card scrap

Stamp: Warm Words - SU

Ink: StazOn white

Punch: Elegant Butterfly - SU,

Alcohol ink: dark red - Tim Holtz (to tint the silver butterfly)

Embossing folder: Flowering Spring - Mpress

Alcohol marker: Copic RC34 - Dark pink, to colour the rhinestones

Misc.: 1/16" rhinestones, foam mounting squares, 5/8" black organza ribbon, 

Supplies used:

Cardstock: Recollections black and white, Silver metallic card scrap

Stamp: Wonderful Words - SU

Ink: StazOn white

Punch: Bitty Butterfly - SU,

Alcohol ink: dark red - Tim Holtz (to tint the silver butterflies)

Embossing folder: Flowering Spring - Mpress

Alcohol marker: Copic V04 Lilac, to colour the rhinestones

Misc.: 1/16" rhinestones, foam mounting squares, 5/8" bright pink organza ribbon, 

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.

Father's Day Angelfish

With Stampin' Up's new catty coming out this week I need to make some room for new stamps in my oh so tiny craft corner. So this last weekend I spend some time organizing and purging a little.
This led to an old SU stamp case full of un-mounted Club Scrap stamps. I had removed these from the wooden blocks about 2 years ago with every intention to mount them on EZ mount next chance I got. Apparently now was that time.

This lovely little angelfish called out to be used and what better opportunity than on a great Father's Day card for my dad.

I honestly had no specific idea or technique in mind when I started. I grabbed several items and several inks and just started to play.

I brayered the background in Pool Party and then stamped the speckles in Island Indigo.
I sponged a sandy ocean floor in Sahara Sand and added the seaweed using Mossy Meadow.
I then stamped my fish in Tangelo Twist and misted everything with a little water for a watercolour effect.

Now I am not a very patient person. So once this was more-or-less dry, I stamped  various circles (made from scrap rubber) in white. Note I used a slightly most baby wipe to smudge and lighten the white pigment ink a little (rub in circular motion). Once everything was dry I re-stamped the fish in Tangerine Tango for a little more definition. Then for some sparkle I used a bit of PSX Diamond Sparkle. Just enough sparkle to "glitz-up" the card, but not too much so that it's still a masculine enough card.

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Recollections white
Stamps: Angelfish - Club Scrap, Build a Blossom - SU, Gorgeous Grunge - SU, Crazy About You - SU
Ink: Tuxedo Black - Memento, Pool Party, Island Indigo, Sahara Sand, Mossy meadow, Tangerine Tango, Tangelo Twist, White Craft pad - SU
Misc.: foam square (to mount the panel onto my card front) PSX Diamond Sparkle.

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.

Silhouette Sunset

I bought the Inspired by Nature two piece stamp set a while back on eBay (long time retired) as I've always wanted it and missed out when it was a current SU product.
When I first got it I unmounted both stamps from their wooden blocks, replace the foam with EZmount and put the stamps aside. 

I have come to realize that it is a rather common occurrence that I forget exactly what I own, despite having an itemized inventory list.so common. So these lovely stamps have been sitting in my ignored pile ever since.

This past weekend I pulled them out and told myself it was time to sue them, at least once. I decides on this fast and easy card.

I do wish the black had come out a bit bolder. I considered re-stamping it a second time but knew I wouldn't be able to line it up exactly so left it as is. Just another reason why a MISTI is on my wish list, and slowly but surely moving towards the top.

For the sunset background I used Work of Art. Very fast and easy and great results. I mounted my image on a black mat, a mere 1/16"all around just to have a slight contrast from the card front. I added my ribbon and bow before adhering it to the card front.

The sentiment was stamped directly onto my card and trimmed out with very small 3/16" rhinestones.

Supplies used:

Cardstock: Recollections

Stamps: Inspired by Nature - SU, Work of Art - SU, Sheltering Tree - SU

Ink: Tuxedo Black - memento, SU - Crushed Curry, Tangelo Twist, Cajun Craze, Cherry Cobbler

Misc.: 3/16" rhinestones, 5/8" black organza ribbon.

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to see you again soon.