Ingenious Inkling

Offbeat Tomato Thanks

A friend graciously shared her delicious tomato bounty with me, so I wanted to make her a special thank you card.  Since finding this cool corn stamp from Impression Obsession, I've been on the lookout for Leigh Hannan's tomato art.  I finally found it on our Chicago Stamp Store trip.  I combined it with Kazan's Sketch #33 from 2 Sketches 4 You.  I flipped the sketch on its side to work with my image.

 

I stamped the image on watercolor paper and clear embossed.  I had fun painting with Red Pepper Color Wash and Moss Green Twinkling H20 paint.  The clear embossing helps keep the paint and ink from bleeding.  The papers are from Basic Grey's Offbeat and Cupcake Collections.  I think the sentiment is an old one from The Angel Company. 

Enjoy the weekend.

Weekly Link Love ... and a Winner

Here's a list of some of my favorite finds from this week:

• Cool Vintage Woodblock Vases
• Gorgeous soap packagingfrom Anthropoligie
• Fabulous patterns for fun felt food
• Fun, funky, & free illustration downloads
• Very creative game board picture frame
• More fabulous candle packaging (yes, I am a packaging design junkie ... so much inspiration)
• This fabulous Typography video ... I love when words collide with art
• Another great video by Kelly Corrigan - Transcending: Words on Women and Strength (get a tissue)
• After seeing these yummy pictures, I've been craving Texas Sheet Cake

And the winner of the fun Caard Hop Candy Giveaway is Aliy aka Allison Mayer from Aamp'ed Creative.   E-mail me your address & I'll get your goodies in the mail.  Thanks so much to everyone for joining me on the Hop ... it was a blast.

Celebrate Today ... and Every Day

The sponsor for the August 20th Caardvarks Challenge is MyStamp Box.  The challenge is to create a card that features the colors of their logo ~ pink, black and white ~and link it up by midnight PST on August 31st. 

The prize for the winner will be MyStamp Box's very cool Funky Flowers stamp set.   There are so many fun designs in their collection ... a couple of favorites are the Neighborhoods and very cute Birthday Balloons

For my card I used Raspberry Fizz cardstock from PTI stamped with the Hero Arts DesignBlock: Flourish.  The Butterfly stamp from the Together set was stamped once on white cardstock and again on Raspberry Fizz.  I paper pieced the butterfly and the center of the flower.

 

To finish the design, I found a font that closely matched the stamped sentiment and computer generated my sentiment tag.  I used a heart punch for the shaped end.

These are some very fun colors ... can't wait to see what you create.

Day 3 ~ Core'dinations Caard Hop

Welcome to Day 2 of the Caardvarks first ever Caard Hop sponsored by Core'dinations.  Here's what you need to do for a chance to be entered into a drawing to win a Super Assortment Package of Core'dinations product (retail value $68):

• "Follow" or subscribe to the Caardvarks Blog, as well as the blogs of each Caardvarks Design Team Member (list below) 
• Subscribe to the Core'dinations newsletter
• Visit each Caardvarks Design Team member's blog and leave a comment on the Blog Hop posts, each day
• Return to Caardvarks Blog & leave a comment on today's post that you've completed the Hop.
• There will be one prize package given away each day.

The Varks crew had the privilege of designing with Core'dinations new Whitewash cardstockcollection.  For the first card I used five different embossing folders to create lots of texture.  In addition to the whitewash cardstock, I also added in some papers from their super assortment, which also have the great contrasting core colors.

   

The bunny is from the Detours set by October Afternoon ... the sentiment is Unity Stamp Company.

This next card features a fun Halloween stamp from Inkadinkado that was stamped directly on the Whitewash paper, clear embossed, and then painted with some Shimmerz Glitter Paint.  I love how the Spider Web embossed on the Whitewash paper.  I did lots of sanding and inking on this one.  The bats are a Martha Stewart punch.

 

And lastly, Whitewash cardstock is perfect for winter cards.  I love how the texture of the cardstock shows through on the stamped Inkadinkado snowman.  The adorable sentiment is from A Muse. 

The snowflake background was sanded.  I use a slightly damp baby wipe to remove the extra dust and bring out the color of the core.  The border punch is new from EK Success and the snowflake punch is Martha Stewart.

 

Remember, if you leave a comment here, you'll also be eligible for my Blog Candy giveaway.

Now head to the next stop on the hop - the Artistic Avenger - Carrie Gaskin.

Jenyfur

Lauren

Mel

Lori

Tanis

Adela

Kryssi

Nathalia

Jenn B.

Pamela

Stephanie <----- you are here

Carrie

Ashley

Lucy

Heidi

Michelle

Jolene

Daniela

Day 2 ~ Core'dinations Caard Hop

Welcome to Day 2 of the Caardvarks first ever Caard Hop sponsored by Core'dinations.  Here's what you need to do for a chance to be entered into a drawing to win a Super Assortment Package of Core'dinations product (retail value $68):

• "Follow" or subscribe to the Caardvarks Blog, as well as the blogs of each Caardvarks Design Team Member (list below) 
• Subscribe to the Core'dinations newsletter
• Visit each Caardvarks Design Team member's blog and leave a comment on the Blog Hop posts, each day
• Return to Caardvarks Blog & leave a comment on today's post that you've completed the Hop.
• There will be one prize package given away each day.

The Varks crew had the privilege of designing with Core'dinations new Whitewash cardstock collection.  Not only do I love the cool effect of the Whitewash, I also love the fabulous solid colors that show through when you tear, score or sand ... aren't these colors wonderful together??

 

For these two cards, I cut two strips 4 1/2 inches long and then tore each piece into approximate 1" strips.  I started layering from the bottom on a white card base alternating colors, and then trimmed along each side and the top to even everything up.  The butterflies were punched from the cardstock, embossed with the Cuttlebug Textile Texture embossing folder, and sanded & inked to bring out the color.  The sentiment is from the A Muse Sushi Set.

 

For the second card I assembled the card base in the same way.  The Flower is layered with Primas and flowers punched from the same cardstock, embossed and sanded.  I finished with a leafy branch from Magenta and a Hero Arts sentiment.  So quick, easy, and fun.

Remember, if you leave a comment here, you'll also be eligible for my Blog Candy giveaway.

Now head to the next stop on the hop - the Artistic Avenger - Carrie Gaskin.

Jenyfur

Lauren

Mel

Lori

Tanis

Adela

Kryssi

Nathalia

Jenn B.

Pamela

Stephanie <----- you are here

Carrie

Ashley

Lucy

Heidi

Michelle

Jolene

Daniela

Day 1 ~ Core'dinations Caard Hop

Welcome to the Caardvarks first ever Caard Hop sponsored by Core'dinations.  Here's what you need to do for a chance to be entered into a drawing to win a Super Assortment Package of Core'dinations product (retail value $68):

• "Follow" or subscribe to the Caardvarks Blog, as well as the blogs of each Caardvarks Design Team Member (list below) 
• Subscribe to the Core-dinations newsletter
• Visit each Caardvarks Design Team member's blog and leave a comment on the Blog Hop posts, each day
• Return to Caardvarks Blog & leave a comment on today's post that you've completed the Hop.
• There will be one prize package given away each day.

The Varks crew was lucky to get to design with the fabulous new Whitewash Collection.  For my first card I embsossed with the QuicKutz Vine Label Embossing folder.  I flipped the folder so that the design was on the left instead of the right created a de-bossed image (where the image goes into the paper rather than being raised).  I sanded around the image and then used a sponge to add a bit of ink for more contrast.  The flourishes were accented with pearls. 

I finished with a large Prima bloom (inked with purple ink) & sentiment from Catslife Press.

This is another card using the same cardstock with the Cuttlebug Leafy Branch.  I usually make the brand come from the bottom of the card, but this time I turned it to fall from the top.

 

I sanded and then wiped with a slightly damp baby wipe to remove the dust and bring out the color of the cardstock.  I finished with a sheer ribbon and sentiment from Hero Arts Anytime Messages.

Also, if you leave a comment here, you'll have a chance to win these goodies from me.  I'll draw one winner after the conclusion of day 3 of the Caard Hop.

Now head to the next stop on the hop - the Artistic Avenger - Carrie Gaskin.

Jenyfur

Lauren

Mel

Lori

Tanis

Adela

Kryssi

Nathalia

Jenn B.

Pamela

Stephanie <----- you are here

Carrie

Ashley

Lucy

Heidi

Michelle

Jolene

Daniela

Flight

Today's SCS Featured Stamper is Stamp Muse ... lover of dogs and all things beautiful.  She's a regular participant in the Saturday Inspiration Challenge, so I was thrilled to be able to use one of her inspiration cards ... IC171 - Copper Tiles ... to inspire me.

I love the layout ... so perfect for inchie stamps.  I also love the combination of shimmery papers.  I changed up the color palette and stamps, as well as adding a knot to the ribbon and a tag for my sentiment.

Stamps are from Inkadinkado Spring is Here and Birds & Butterflies.  The shimmery ivory paper is a handmade scrap I bought years ago at an art store.  I used a heart punch for the end of my sentiment tag.

Marrakech Serenity Song

Do you ever find that you really don't "see" your card until you get it on the screen to edit the photo.  Sometimes it is only then that I realize changes that I could make to the design to improvie it.  Sometimes I make the changes ... sometimes (like tonight), I just call it a learning experience.

When I saw my friend Amy was on the DT for a new blog - Get Sketchy - I had to give it a try.  This card combines the Serenity set from Artistic Outpost with Marrakech DP from Basic Grey.  I also did the bonus challenge to use designer paper.

 

After uploading, I realized that I should have stamped the sentiment in dark navy or pumpkin pie ... I like the colors together, but I think a darker ink would have provided more contrasts.  A ticket punched corner on the top right of the sentiment would have helped too.  However, I do like the effect of the dotted wave punch on both sides of the paper.

Vintage Loom Bloom

About a year ago, I bought a vintage flower loom and raffia.  It reminded me of days when I used to craft with my grandma ... making canning lid pin cushions, embroidering tea towels, weaving potholders on a loom. Such great memories.

So when I saw the Vintage Flower Loom on this week's Inspiration Challenge site, the Curiosity Shoppe, I was finally inspired to open up the kit and play.

I created a double layer flower and then stitched through the center with my pretty lame attempt at french knots. I attached it to K&Company Que Sera Sera cardstock and stamped some American Crafts Lavish flourishes and a Hero Arts sentiment to finish.

I took it to work to hang in my cubicle. I love surrounding myself with art ... it relaxes me while I spend all day crunching numbers.

I hope you find inspiration.

Friends Forever

I had some studio time tonight, so I created another sketch card for the Hero Arts blog. 

 

I love the stamps from the Hero Arts Together set.  For this one I trimmed to remove the sentiment and framed the birds with several layers of cardstock.  The base is Core'dinations Black Magic cardstock embossed with the Cuttlebug Leafy Branch and sanded to reveal the color. 

I finished with the Dotted Wave border punch, two Martha Stewart punched hearts, and an All Occasion Message.

Make sure you mark your calendars for a fun Caardvarks Caardhop sponsored by Core'dinations.  Seriously, this is some of my all time favorite paper ... so you won't want to miss several opportunities to win a huge Core'dinations prize package.  Here's a blinkie for your blog, so help get out the word.

Happy Friday!