Ingenious Inkling

Happy New Year Caardvarks Style

Well the first Caardvarks Challenge of 2008 has been posted ... an exclusive Becky Fleck sketch.  A link to your card needs to be posted in the comments by January 18th (or it can be e-mailed if you don't have a blog or gallery).  And yes ... there is a prize for the winner of this creative exploration ... a big priority mail box stuffed with scrapbooking (or card making) goodies ... seriously, it will be stuffed.

Here's one of my sketch creations. When I first saw the sketch, I started thinking of the different vertical sentiments that I had in my collection.  This quote by Eleanor Roosevelt is one of my favorites.  Then I immediately thought of these "scary" li'l monsters by Green Grass Stamps (okay, so they're not really that scary, but this cute little guy looks scared).  I colored him using Prismacolor Pencils and Mona Lisa odorless paint thinner for blending.  I even added little dots of glitter to his eyeballs.

Papers are from the Pink Martini Pink Squirrel collection and the rick-rack is from the notions section of my local fabric store.

I can't wait to see what you create.

Split Negative with a Twist

Today's SCS challenge to try a new technique was a "twist" on the split negative.  Rather than using black and white or brown and ivory, the challenge was to do the technique with other coordinating colors.  I decided I wanted to try the technique using these two sheets of daisy d's DP from the Snowflakes & Holly 6x6" pad that were the same pattern in different colors.

I used my stamp-a-ma-jig and lined it up on the corner of the DP, so I could place my stamp in the same position on each piece of paper (for easier trimming).  I stamped the Magenta blooms in Brilliance Graphite Black and embossed with Black EP.  I then trimmed the images to the same size and cut them in half vertically.  I think this also would have been cool with a horizontal cut, but I didn't think of that until after the fact.

I finished the card with another piece of DP from the same mat, a paper-clip with ribbon, and a rub-on sentiment.  I love the fun of trying something new.

PS - I didn't let my inoperable card reader get me down ... I purchased a USB card reader (which will be great for traveling and uploading photos on computers of family and friends) ... where there's a will, there's a way.

Simple Sewing

A friend gave me a beautiful note-card from Unique Artistry.  I love how they incorporate sewing with clean, classic design.  I wanted to try to emulate their style in my own creation.  I loved these cards so much, they ended up being my Christmas 2007 thank you cards.

I chose pieces of cardstock that had some visual interest (this white cardstock has fiber flecks and even a little shimmer).  I started sewing where I wanted to place the flowers and did a slight backstitch, so I could trim the sewing close to the paper without it unraveling.  Then I just sewed a path right off the edge of the card and left the thread tails dangling as part of the design. 

I punched the flowers from a pink marbled handmade paper and attached them with glue dots.  I added adhesive gems to their centers and the card was complete.  I think I may have to try my own version of their Valentine creations.

Archives and Computer Woes

It feels like I spent my entire weekend on the phone with various Dell technical support representatives.  After returning my computer to its initial factory state, reinstalling all of my programs, restoring all of my data, and removing the side of my tower so I could unplug the SD card connector and re-seat it, I still do not have operating card readers ... very frustrating.  A local technician is supposed to be contacting me Wednesday or Thursday to make an appointment to come replace the card readers, but until then, I am photo-less.

So in lieu of new cards, I thought I'd post a few more pre-blog photos of some of my favorite cards of 2007.

The background on this card was made by using Adirondack color washes (butterscotch and raisin) on a coffee filter.  After it dried, I embossed it in my cuttlebug to add a little texture.  The frame was cut with a QuicKutz die and mounted on adhesives to allow room to tie on all of the fibers.

I loved the bright pop of the lime green cardstock with the black and white.  I also loved the floral charm attached with a jump ring (dragonfly by Magenta).

This was my first attempt at using bleach.  It was a lot of fun, and I loved the highlights it provided to this Dance of the Seasons image by Post Modern Designs.

I had a request for a masculine thank you card shaped like a piece of luggage.  I embossed the paper with my cuttlebug and rubbed ink over it to try to produce a leather-like effect.  I added a fun "luggage tag" and and lots of foreign stamps that I had in my stash.

Here's another card with a fun little chipboard charm (die cut from a lightweight coaster and covered with paper).  I love the combination of papers and ribbons.

This swirly card was inspired by a shirt.  I loved the colors and all of the swirls.  The Rhonna Farrer swirls v2 and Stampers Anonymous Breathe were two of my favorite stamp purchases of the year.

I was blessed with a new niece and nephew this year, and I did some baby thank you cards as gifts.  This was one of my favorites (inspired by seewah's Polka Dot Sole Mates).  I love the fun colors and all of those polka dots.

And lastly, I loved how the textures add interest to this relatively simple design ... I need to remember to use a crimper on DP more often.

It's been fun looking back on my creations for the year and seeing the growth in my designs  I'm really looking forward to another year of creating (and working computer) in 2008.  Thanks to all of you for joining me on my creative journey.

Completely Loved

Today's featured stamper at SCS is Danielle Lounds (aka Fat Cat Stamper).  I chose her fun Pink Flowers card as my inspiration.

I swapped out the flowers with these sassy Sentiments Circles from Autumn Leaves.  Each circle is stamped in ColorBox Dark Brown ink on DP and punched out with the Whale of Punch circle punch.  All of the DP is from the Pink Martini Designs Pink Squirrel collection.  Their website is no longer operational, so I'm not sure if they're still making paper, but I love these bright colors.

I attached the circles using pop-dots of layered dimension.  Thanks Danielle for the inspiration.

New Toys - Clip It Up!

I spent last night putting together my new Clip It Up! (and watching Sweet Land ... great love story).    I was able to free-up three drawers in my storage units (which are now available to hold more stamps).  It is larger than I thought it would be.  The largest sticker sheets hang from the main rack without dragging the desk.  The clips are very strong and will hold multiple sheets in their teeth.  It is also very easy to reorganize and move things around if I decide to change my categories. 

I got the add-on which screws onto the top for another layer of storage.  What you see on my rack now used up the clips that were included with the lower rack and about 10 clips from the top rack package.  I bought an extra set of clips, so I have quite a bit more room to add goodies.  I may add some of my favorite cards to one section of the top rack.  I'm a very visual person (my studio has been described by some as sensory overload), so I love having everything within my point of view.

Felt Flowers

I discovered something new in my travels over the holidays (at least something new to me) - stiffened felt.  I love felt flower, but hate paying what seems to be a rather steep price for them.  I had tried using my Cuttlebug and regular craft felt to cut out my own flowers with limited success. 

However, I was able to insert the stiffened felt directly into my punches ... and voila ... felt flowers.  It was a tight fit and sometimes I had to sort of shimmy the felt back and forth until it inserted all of the way.  Also, it was not easy to punch.  I had to lay the punches on a table top and push down firmly (for the leaves, I actually had to put the punch on the floor and stand on it to get it to go through), but they all punched very clean and sharp.

I used some pop-dots under some of the flower to add dimension to my bouquet and added a bit of bling to the flower centers.  The yummy trim is by Wrights.

This card is for Sketch 36 at SketchThis: Cards.

I spent over 3 hours on the phone with Dell today trying to get my photo card reader to work consistently.  After 4 different service technician calls, they are finally going to restore my computer to its factory settings (i.e. I will lose everything I installed), so I've got to do a complete back-up tonight and get ready to start again ... grrr ... technology is wonderful ... when it works.

Design Rescue 911

It feels so good to be back into my regular routine of creating in my pajamas on Saturday morning.  Seeing friends and family over the holidays was wonderful, but I also cherish the my time alone in my studio.

Today's inspiration piece is this beautiful cocktail dress by Nicole Miller found at Nordstroms.  I loved the ethereal feel with the gauzy sheer fabric and the delicate metallic accents. 

I also wanted to incorporate No Time To Stamp?'s New Toys challenge and use some of my new goodies from my holiday stash.

I started with a Vintage Corner rub-on in metallic copper from Hambly Screen Prints.  These rub-on's are a bit sticky, so make sure you keep the backing attached when you're trying to decide on a position on your paper.  However, they rub-on like a dream with none of the repeated rubbing I often need with other brands.  I will definitely be adding some more of these to my stash.

I thought my new Moonlit Fairy from Rubber Stampede worked well with the swirls of the rub-on.  I went digging through my embossing powder bin and found some copper embossing powder.  I tried embossing on a scrap piece of DP first (since I'd never used this embossing powder before and didn't know how it would look with the rub-on).  Using Versamark, the result was too sheer.  I tried again using Encore Metallic Gold ink and got the effect I was looking for.

This is the point at which my design went awry.  I wanted to incorporate some ivory from the inspiration dress and tried a variety of ivory and white inks on the DP without getting the look I wanted.  I finally decided that the Brilliance White ink was the closest I could get, but when I stamped the flourish on the DP, I got a big watery smudge instead.  I tried embossing and then rubbing to try to remove the smudge, but no luck.

Since this was the only rub-on I had with this design, I either had to rescue the design or start over.  I went back to the dress to try to figure out a rescue.  I was truck by the cut-outs in the bodice of the dress and decided to see if I could figure out a way to incorporate that into my design.  I cut away the smudge and then kept cutting into the design.  I attached the finished piece to an ivory piece of DP from DCWV's Once Upon a Time Mat stack to incorporate the ivory into the design.  Since the dress had tiny buttons, I also added a few vintage ivory buttons from my collection and a Stampendous sentiment (from the Garden Box set) to finish the design.

This certainly wasn't what I envisioned in my head when I began, but I really like the finished result. 

Caardvarks Anticipation

Remember, there's still time (until 12/31) to submit a card for the very fun Rick-Rack Patty-Whack challenge at Caardvarks.  Make sure you mosey on over and check out all of those amazing creations in the gallery.  Queen Kat Designs will be giving away a love-themed ink it kit to the winning creation ... perfect for those Valentines.

And, on January 1st it will be the first Caardvarks challenge of 2008.  It's a "Caardvarks Exclusive" sketch by the fabulous Becky Fleck of PageMaps.  I can't show you my fun creations just yet, but I thought I'd offer a few tiny teasers.

In CASE of Emergency

The Christmas card making frenzy is closely followed by the thank you card making frenzy.  I decided to give Sharon's In CASE of Emergency challenge a try to help with the process.

The challenge was to do a quick CASE of another card maker's creation ... producing an "I need a card right now" creation of your own.  I went to my saved favorites and quickly perused the cards I had saved for later inspiration.  I chose Jana's Toile Tent cards to to quickly case.  I like the clean yet elegant look of her monochromatic toile design.

I used my Cornish Heritage Farms Victorian Sunflower backgrounder stamp & omitted the ribbon and corner brads for easier assembly.  I did line-up three small brads at the bottom for a little added visual interest.  I also added a touch of Frosted Lace Stickles to the heart in my PSX sentiment.  These will be very easy to mass produce in different colors (I used my DCWV boxed cards for the base and middle scalloped square).  Also, since the backgrounder is trimmed to 4"x4", I don't have to worry about stamping it straight.