Ingenious Inkling

You're All Kinds of Wonderful

When I saw the inspiration photo at the Color My Heart Color Dare Challenge, it reminded me of several painted panels I've had near my studio table for some time just waiting to become a card.

 

 

I had done a paint smooshing technique with Dylusions Shimmer Paint that I got from The Ink Pad in New York City (they are celebrating their 23rd birthday with 23% off your order if you use code 23YEARS at checkout). Sale applies to in-stock merchandise only and ends at 11:59pm on Sunday, September 26th.

 

 

I put drops of paint on a piece of parchment paper and then sprayed with water before dragging pieces of white cardstock through the colors.  I added more water until all of the paint was on paper.

 

Each one got a different mix of color.  I loved the shimmery effect.

For today's card, I embossed one panel with the Pinkfresh Studio Essentials: Slim Stitches Die (also at The Ink Pad).  I'm linking-up at the Simon Says Stamp Stitch It Challenge.

 

 

One a second panel, I stamped the large flower from Pinkfresh Studio Friendship Blooms and fussy cut the bloom before attaching it to a circle cut with the Pinkfresh Studio Diagonal Stitched Circles together with leaves stamped & cut from a green/blue painted panel created using the same technique.

 

 

I'm also linking-up at the Seize the Birthday Stitching Challenge.

 

I stamped the sentiment & clear embossed on the same green/blue painted paper.  I finished with some green gems.

That makes a Tic-Tac-Toe Challenge horizontal across the top with Die Cut, Orange & Embossing.

 

More of the ABC's of Gel Printing

I've been having lots of fun working my way through the Alphabet with GelliArts.

T is for Texture.  I used the texture from a snowflake embossing folder to pick-up the manganese Blue paint from my plate and then picked-up the print on the left.

 

Next I embossed with the ink-covered folder and got the textured print on the right.  So much fun ... must paint/ink embossing folders again.

U is for Unity.  This one was tough for me, but then I realized that I could use a pattern (in this case Bubble Wrap) to create Unity among different colored stripes ... also must remember to save my bubble wrap somewhere in this studio mess for printing.

 

 

V is for Vertical.  I found this Arrow Stencil in my stash (sorry I searched but couldn't find the source ... I sure wish Stencil Makers put their name on the stencil) and used it to create Vertical Designs.  After learning I needed Opaque paints with contrast to do Gel Press Image Transfer, I went on a buying spree (and then inadvertently bought Open paints rather than the regular ones I usually use ... we'll see what I can do with that longer drying time).  I do love those colors.

 

 

And W is for Watercolor.  I decided to use my neglected Brutus Monroe Aqua Pigments in two Neon shades.

 

 

This is basically a modified Ink Smooshing Technique.  I played around with amount of ink (middle print had a lot of just the orangey pink) and how I applied it to the plate.

Next up is X is for X-designs.  I found an X-shaped foam stamp in my stash, so I used it to make a few prints.

 

 

I really love the grungy clean-up print.

Y is for Yarn.  I didn't have any regular yarn, but I had several skeins of this thin yarn I had picked-up after I saw people use it in a cool way on cards (and then of course I have yet to use it).

 

 

I strung it across my plate and did several layers and several layers on a clean-up print too ... I am still loving those greens.

Hope you've enjoying joining me for my ABC's of Gel Printing this month.

Let it Snow!

For our next Jingle Belles prompt is Dashing Through the Snow where we're asking you create projects that celebrate the white fluffy flakes of snow … it might be snowmen, snowflakes or just snowfall, but include some snow on your cards.

This Penny Black Snowman Joy is my favorite snow person.  I feel the same joy when I'm outside feeling snowflakes falling on my face.  I'm a full-on four-seasons gal, but Autumn and Winter are my favorites. 

 

 

I started with Core'dinations Cardstock that I embossed with Sizzix Winter Snowflakes 3D Embossing Folder and then sanded to expose the core.   I'm linking-up at the Let's Squash It! Challenge where the theme is Sand It.

 

 

I sprayed on some iridescent shimmer spray for over all sparkle and then splattered with white acrylic ink after I had attached my snowman and the Penny Black Merry Christmas Sentiment.  I'm also linking-up at the Saturday Penny Black Challenge where the theme is Anything Goes with an optional theme of Embossing.

 

Thursday Link Love

Another week of blogland fun finds:

• 20 Habits of Eventual Millionaires
• Cinnamon Roll Casserole
• I loved Pushing Daisies
• pretty Blueberry Hand Pies
• How to Sew on a Button
• Air Fryer Baked Apples
• Finding Your Way
• Art of Takuji Hamanaka: Future Recollection
• Pancakes with Cranberry Maple Syrup
• how to do a Plank
• how to make paper hollyhocks

Have a tremendous Thursday!

Peachy Washi Birthday

My card is inspired by the photo at the Peach Birthday Fusion Card Challenge.

 

I used a combination of peachy washi tape to create my background inspired by the layers of the rainbow.  I love how the design in one of the tapes looks like a row of lacy rainbows.

 

 

I brought in the gold from the picture with a Gold Embossed Sentiment from Poppy Stamps Peony Bouquet and the Poppy Stamps Susanna Blossom die cut from gold cardstock. 

 

I'm also linking-up at the Poppy Stamps September Wonderful Washi Challenge.

There's also a Washi Tape Challenge at Little Red Wagon.

Gel Press Retro Birthdays

This mornings ABC's of Gel Printing theme was Stamps & Stencils.  I had fun using both including this wonderful Donna Downey Foam Stamp for my prints.  This is one of my favorite color combinations.

 

 

I decided to go ahead and use that center print for a birthday card using the Retro Rubber Stamp Challenge Sketch.

 

 

I stamped Hero Arts wood mounted Birthday Blackboard from 2013 and then die cut a circle from it for the focal point getting as many of the words I could inside the circle.

 

 

The Catherine Pooler Inks are perfect for getting solid coverage for single stamping of a big wood mounted image.  The sentiment is from one of my oldest and most-used Hero Arts acrylic sets in my collection - Essential Messages from 2010.

 

I'm also linking-up at the Simon Says Stamp Stencil Challenge.

And since I had my leftover gel print bits from yesterday, I decided to do a male version of the card.  I didn't have enough print for the Retro layout, so I used the sketch from Sunday Stamps.

 

 

I turned the rectangle into a square to better frame my circle die cut ... again Catherine Pooler inks for coverage, although I had to use Archival for the sentiment because she doesn't have a good rust color in her palette.

 

 

This one uses another vintage wood mounted Hero Arts Happy Birthday from 2007 - still a classic font & size.

Recycled Printing

Today's theme at the ABC's of Printing Challenge is R is for Recycled.  

I wadded-up some recycled packing paper and used it to create a pattern on my print.  Here is the first print using Yellow Oxide Paint and my plate inked with Red Oxide doing the same effect.

 

Here it is with both layers.

 

Then I did a few more prints to clean-up my plate.  The first one had too much yellow paint ... the second one was pure perfection (at least to me).

 

 

I used the clean-up print for my card base and the other two prints for my Hexagons (inking the yellow one on the edges for a bit more contracts) with this week's Freshly Made Sketches layout.

 

 

I also added a few vintage Studio Calico Hexagon stickers (which are still available at Frantic Stamper ... I may need to order some more) that just happened to be out on my studio table.  The branch is Simon Says Stamp Outline Clustered Leaves.

 

 

I finished with a Sticker sentiment.

I'm also linking-up at the Red, Orange, Yellow Color Challenge at Just Us Girls.

 

ABC's of Gel Printing

I've had more fun this week with the ABC's Gel Printing Challenge on Instagram (do you follow me there?).

 

 

I started with M is for Mini Plate Art.  I had fun using my Hexagon Mini Plate with some Studio Light stencils.  I loved the variation of depth of color in the two prints.

 

 

This is another fun Studio Light Stencil.

 

 

For the N is for Nature Challenge I tried printing from some grasses I picked from our park.  It seemed like it should have worked better than it did.

 

 

I sort of wondered what I could make with the painted grass ... but that thought passed (LOL).

O is for Oval was next.  I used an Oval Die to cut an oval opening into a piece of printer paper and then used it as a mask on my Gel Press.

 

 

It's another fun Studio Light Stencil.

I skipped P is for Pastel because I couldn't find my Pan Pastels (I know I have them ... at least I think I have them).

And finally Q is for Q-Tip.  I kept feeling like my prints looked like something you'd see in a Petri Dish, but I had fun creating nonetheless.

 

 

The thing I love about these challenges is that they are just a quick piece of art that I can easily make at the end of a long work day ... because a day always feels better when I get to make some art.

Christmas Tic Tac Toe

We're still playing Tree Skirt Tic Tac Toe at Jingle Belles.

 

 

I decided to go horizontal across the top row with Santa, Bling & Stamping.  I chose a vintage set from my stash - Outpost Artistic Outpost Snowy Woods.  I stamped it onto a piece of purple hand-marbled paper from my stash ... I thought the marbling reminded me of blowing snow. 

 

 

I stamped a snowflake from the same set across the stop & finished with two Eyelet Outlet Silver Pearl Bling Swirls across the top that continued with the swirly feel.

We hope you will come play along.  The link-up will be live until 6pm EST on Wednesday.

Thursday Link Love

Another week of discoveries from the land of blogs:

• Apple Cream Cheese Danishes
• a way to try to visit businesses when they are least busy
• this Sugar Cookie Apple Cobbler looks like a quick and easy way to use Autumn Apples
• how cool is this Granny Square Cardigan
• I often order Tom Kha Soup, but have never tried making it.
• DIY tiny Book Stack Necklace
• Shrines from Found Objects
• do you ever want a Small Batch Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe?
• West Side Story was the first movies I remember watching at home (on a rented video disc player)
• how do you like your green beans?
• what a pretty Concrete Pottery Glaze
• love these pretty Pumpkins (one shown)
• a lovely color combination for a Christmas card

Have a tremendous Thursday!