Ingenious Inkling

STAMPlorations Snark

I just returned from a long crafting weekend with friends (post to follow once I get the group photo), and I tried to plan better than I did last time (bringing fewer things I didn't use and focusing on things I can do while visiting).

I chose to use markers and watercolor paints to create some backgrounds.  I also used my watercolors to paint some ATC sized prints from STAMPlorations.  I paired them with the coordinating sentiments by Chris Dring for STAMPlorations.

For the first one, I'm linking-up at Make My Monday which is P is for ... in this case, P is for Paradise & Painting.

 

The second card is another painted ATC and sentiment pairing ... she needs to apply a bit more sunscreen I believe.  I added a few PinkFresh Studio Ombre Glitter Drops.  

 

 

The final one is the same painted card & sentiment combination.  I added some Honeybee Dogwood Blooms Embossing to the card base for texture.

 

 

I was happy to get all of these done during my creative escape.

Tinsel Tree Inspired

This week at Jingle Belles, we're creating cards inspired by this fun DIY Tinsel Tree Tutorial from White House Crafts.  You may take your inspiration from the trees themselves, the colors, the ornaments or tinsel ... just make sure you include how you were inspired in your post.

 

 

I took my inspiration from both the bottle brush tree & the tinsel tree and embossed my Bottle Brush Trees from Flora & Fauna Bottle Brush Snowglobe Set in silver.  I used my MISTI to line-up the three trees & then cut them out with the Dare 2B Artzy Double Dot Rectangle Framelits Die.

 

I found adhesive gems and stars in colors inspired by the baubles in the photo & decorated my tree. 

 

 

I used the same Double Dotted Die cut on one of my Gelli Press Prints I created in the #marchprintingchallenge for the next frame and then attached both layers to a bright pink card base. 

The sentiment is from the same Flora & Fauna Stamp Set.

Thursday Link Love

Another week of blogland shenanigans:

• Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies
• I love the color combination in this scarf
• Orange Crush Cake ... and creamy Creamsicle Ice Cream
• 33 Things to Eliminate from your Closet
• Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cake Donuts
• Cracker Barrel Copycat Pancakes
• Black Bean, Avocado & Corn Salad
• Love Michele's card with vibrant cone flowers
• Monster Cookie Bars with maple syrup & natural peanut butter
• Did you know you could magnetize a screwdriver?
• love Deborah's cool stenciled city girl
• Cheesecake Stuffed Cinnamon Roll Bake
• Italian Easter Cookies (shown)
• this Color Sensor looks like fun
• Have you ever made Garbage Bread (I feel like I would call it a Stromboli) ... feels like there are so many possibilities.
• No Bake Kool-Aid Pie

Easter Bunny

I used this week's Global Design Project Sketch for a happy little Easter card. 

 

 

I broke out the fun little Bunny Frame from Impression Obsession and paired it with some of my shaving cream marbled paper.

 

 

I added some fun little eyes and a bit of color.  Did you know that Bunny noses can be either pink or black and are genetically passed down from its parents (things I learn while making cards)?  I love these Dare 2B Artzy Rectangle Double Dot Framelits.  I've had that Happy Easter stamp forever (it is by katie & co for Studio G back when Michael's had an awesome bin of $1 stamps).

 

I added a few flower stickers to pull in some more Spring for the Simon Says Spring/Easter Challenge.  It's also Easter at the Papercraft Challenge.

Caffeinated Green Christmas

Today's card is for the March Caffeinated Christmas Challenge.  

 

 

I used three shades of green with the Taylored Expression Perk-Up Background stamp and coordinating Stencils.

 

 

I used sentiments from Taylored Expressions Simple Strips Coffee & Simple Strips Christmas.

 

 

I finished with some gold metallic paint splatter (or spatter) for the #TEMakerChallenge for March.

 

Paint Roll-Off Tiled Birthday

I loved this month's Sketch at The Male Room and had been thinking about ways to interpret it.

 

 

I was doing quite a bit of Gel Press printing today, so I had lots of pieces of paper that I had used to roll-off my brayer to clean it, and I really loved some of the color combinations, especially the ones with the metallic paints.

I used a 5/8" square punch and punched out all of the squares I could get from the paper.  Next I layered them onto a piece of purple-grey Alexandra Renke paper that was also on my studio table.

 

 

I needed masculine birthday cards, so I pulled out this sentiment from Taylored Expressions Penned Pretty.

 

 

I liked the look so much, I did another one with another roll-off sheet.

 

 

Since my sentiment is from April 2000 (it has been retired) I'm also joining the Anything Goes Challenge at Retro Rubber Challenge.

 

March GelliPrinting Fun

I'm still having fun with the #marchprintingchallenge at GelliArts.

Day 11 was Metallic.  I love pulling prints with metallic paints, but for this challenge I combined Gold & Silver Metallic paints in a single print.

 

 

Day 12 was Sparkle,  so I tried pulling a print with glitter paper.  The results on the glitter paper itself was so-so, but the clean-up print was magical.

 

 

 

Day 13's theme was Ombre.  I used two different trios of Catherine Pooler inks and my brayer to get smooth ombre blends.

 

 

I really love the minty greens.

 

 

Day 14 was Flowers.  I tried several things to no avail.  These prints were pulled using two paper flowers I found in my stash.

 

 

Day 15 was Black & White.  I really wanted to get a successful image transfer, but after multiple failed attempts, I used a texty page and got this grungy wonder.

 

 

Day 16's Layers theme produced my favorite print of the week ... I lost count on the number of layers and colors that combined for this one, but I love it.

 

 

Day 17 is Shamrocks.  I used my Shamrock paper punch to create my own stencil and printed lots of layers again.

 

 

And Day 18 was fun with Dots.  I grabbed a Vicki Boutin Stencil from American Crafts made of great big dots and stayed with the Greens to make lots of layers.

 

 

The dark green gives strong contrast.

 

 

Love this combination of colors (even though my alignment was a bi5 off LOL).

 

 

Hope you're enjoying my GelliArts fun half as much as I have been.

Rainbow Cardstock Christmas

We're still celebrating a Cardstock Christmas at Jingle Belles. 

 

 

I decided to cut cardstock scraps into 1/4 inch strips and create a rainbow pattern on the cardstock base for the #staycraftychallenge Somewhere Over the Rainbow at Hero Arts.

 

 

I rainbow inked two sentiment stamps from Hero Arts Holiday Borders & Icons with my MISTI and finished with some green gems.

Thursday Link Love

Another week of skipping through blogland:

• Individual Beef and Guinness Pot Pies
• free hat & scarf knitting pattern
• Six-ingredient Berry Cake
• Brown Sugar Slab Pie (aka a big Pop Tart)
• Pineapple Empanadas (thanks sis)
• Potatoes with Garlic Shrimp (love some Tapas)
• 7-Up Biscuits
• Have you thought about making Ted Lasso Biscuits?
• How to felt your own Easter Egg (shown)
• Boston Cream Pie Cookies
• I'm intrigued by this New England Seafood Casserole

Have a tremendous Thursday!

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

This weeks Shopping Our Stash Challenge is Somewhere Over the Rainbow - use Rainbows or Rainbow Colors on your card.

 

 

I went with a St. Patrick's Day Doodlebug Designs retired Lots O' Luck paper collection that I've had for quite some time.

 

 

 

I added a file tab sticker from the collection and a stamped happy birthday sentiment.

 

 

I was having so much rainbow fun, I made a second card for the Just Us Girls Challenge Rainbow theme.  I used a collection of Dylusions Shimmer Paints to pull a rainbow Gel Press print.

 

 

Then I added a stamped rainbow & sentiment from Essentials by Ellen Better Days Ahead (retired).  This sentiment reminds me of my Great Aunt Mary who always asked me if I was happy ... and if my answer wasn't yes, then she worked to encourage me to find happiness.  I have always been so grateful for her perspective.